A Gaara's love story
by HCCH
Summary: It is simply a love story between the Kazekage and a girl with a nickname "Hii"
1. Chapter 0

Prologue:

My story is created based on the original manga "Naruto" from Kishimoto Masashi-sensei, following his timeline with a few twists of my own. It's pretty much about my most favorite character, Gaara and my imaginary one, Hii.

This story is especially dedicated to one of my friends since I build the main female character according to her personality and appearance. But as the story goes, my character has become an independent OC and doesn't resemble my friend much (which she was mad about *_*)

I wrote this fanfic to practice my English writing skill so if you find any grammatical or vocabulary mistakes then…I'm really sorry, pls help me improve :D

Finally, I love to know what you think of my story. **Please review**!


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Reunion

_**A year had passed…**_

Standing on the balcony, Gaara let his mind wander with the fierce wind of the desert. He hardly noticed a long line of girls cheering on the ground, waiting for him to make his decision. What decision was there to make, it was all Kankuro's stupid joke – well his brother put it as "attempt" anyway. Gaara knew his sibling was just trying to find him a girlfriend – "so that you won't feel lonely when we're not around". Either way, Gaara was still not interested. Being a Kazekage, he had tons of work waiting to be accomplished. He hardly had time to rest, not to mention time for a proper girlfriend. Or maybe he was just lying to himself right now…

_That person …when will she come back…why does it take her so long…I mis…_

The train of thought was cut by a loud, and yet annoying, roar of laughter from Kankuro. "Your face, ha, like an idiot. Why? So many fine women here today right?". Since the day Gaara became the mighty Kazekage, Kankuro seemed less afraid of his younger brother because he sensed the fearsome aura had disappeared. Therefore, he became more "natural" in conversation with Gaara, which actually meant he said whatever he had in mind. Feeling uneasy and bothersome, Gaara silently turned his back and walked toward his office, leaving the girl in grieve disappointment. Suddenly, Kankuro shouted out in shock: "Hey Gaara, isn't that..."

_**A year had passed…**_

Hii was sitting under the enormous foliage of a Palo Verdre. To be honest, it was her favorite tree around this desert. The color of its leaves, the smell of its resin, the posture of its branches, everything was so fascinating. She felt like home again. Well, to be more precise, Suna was her second home. Hii still remembered how she left this harsh but lovely village to find where her true home was. It couldn't be denied she lost her memory back then and Gaara, Gaara was the only one whom she felt safe with even though people keep calling him a monster. After the near-dead-Gaara incident, she never thought of leaving him behind ever again. However, the urge to discover her origin, her pass had tempted her. Also, she knew it better than anyone that she needed to break the curse that Orochimaru gave her during childhood. Because of that horrible curse, her memory was taken away, her power was suppressed. That was the reason why she wandered in endless journeys without an aim…

On the other hand, there was a hidden goal in this particular journey.

Hii sought for battles. The battles on the way had exhausted her. Battle with the Akatsuki, battle with Itachi and yet, battle with the Shukaku – Ichibi. Taking the monster back from the Akatsuki wasn't easy but fought with it was a nightmare. Hii thought she would be dead if she couldn't open the Circle of Hell in time. She got what she needed, but for a price. When she drained the chakra from the Ichibi using the new technique that Bee-sama taught her, she lost some of her own chakra. "Everything for Gaara"- she thought…

Hii woke up again. It seemed like she had been nodding off the whole time. "What a pain! A little more to go…" Hii thought for herself and looked at the direction where the Suna village was. Finally she could come back, curse lifted, identity known. Hii confidently walked into the village, felt every touch of the wind on her hair-the same wind that Gaara had been feeling. Then, Hii saw it, the same red hair, the same old gourd, so familiar…so dear… Can't help herself anymore, Hii shouted…

_At this moment_

"Hii…"

"Gaara-kun!"

Gaara couldn't believe his eyes anymore. It was Hii standing right there with her cape flying freely behind her back. He hurried toward the balcony and looked down. There was no mistake Hii had come back, just as she promised him before. Hii gave him a smile and ran to his place. The girls were all looking at her in awe "Isn't that Hii-chan?", "Omg, it is her, I thought she left Suna forever", "Rumour has it that she was Kazekage-sama's secret love"…

"Hey Gaara-kun, you gonna leave me standing like this for the rest of your life? Hurry up!"

With a slight snap of his fingers, Gaara teleported Hii right beside him, using his sand of course. Now being in front of Gaara, Hii took a close look at the one she had been missing for so long. Well, the facial features were still the same, guess he couldn't sleep much because his eyes bags were still as heavy as before. The only thing was, "You got taller!", Hii said in pure excitement, giving him another angelic smile. Gaara, who still remained silent, looked deep into her eyes, deeply until Hii suddenly blushed and turned away. Amused by her reaction, Gaara smirked then walked away into his office again, leaving Hii alone with the immature Kankuro and the elegant Temari.

"What is wrong with Gaara? Did I do something wrong?" – Hii asked innocently.

"Nah, he's been missing you like crazy, Hii-chan. Maybe he's just shyyyy…" – Kankuro raised his voice on purpose so Gaara could hear.

"Enough already, Kankuro! Welcome back Hii-chan, we've been expecting you since then" – Temari smiled.

"I missed everyone, too. It's good to come back."…"and the secret mission…" – Hii lowered her voice.

Understanding the situation, Kankuro hurriedly escorted her inside while Temari tried her best to disperse the noisy crowd.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Dispute

Hii walked slowly beside Kankuro. The corridor seemed so quiet, only the sound of their footsteps was heard as well as its echoes. While observing the dark scene surrounding her, Hii suddenly felt a chill in her backbones. What if the Suna's authorities refused to accept her conditions? What if they forced her to hand over the chakra of Shukaku? Whatever it was, it wouldn't be pleasant and she would have to find a way to sort things out. Previous battles had already weakened her body and definitely she wouldn't need to have another one.

"Here we are, princess. The conference." – Kankuro whispered.

Hii came in, trying to act calm as usual. The elders and the consultants were sitting in a round table, staring at her intensely. Then Hii noticed an empty chair, placed higher than the other ones. "That must be for Gaara.", she thought.

"Kazekage-sama doesn't know of this meeting, young lady. We prefer to inform him later, when things are all set…" – an old consultant spoke up.

Hii awkwardly turned to face him. This man seemed to read what she had been thinking. All of a sudden, an unexpected feeling arose, controlling her body. It's the anxiety, the same anxiety when she was desperate and Gaara wasn't around to protect her. Maybe the fact that Gaara is now absent made she feel insecure in front of these guileful old men. Quickly put on the cold and straight face, Hii felt much more relieved when she saw Baki nodding at her.

"Can I deliver my report now?"

"That's what we have been waiting for."

Then the stories were told. Hii told them in such an indifferent manner as if nothing is serious. Her pass, her identity had now been revealed. How she encountered the Akatsuki and their methods used in combat were also brought to light. More importantly, she brought back what had once been stolen – the cursed chakra of the Ichibi. Everything went smoothly, at least until Hii finished her stories.

"So,.." – an authority speaks up " …you are truly the long lost princess of the hidden Cloud village in the land of Lightning. The one and only granddaughter of the recent Raikage. Your clan was annihilated by Orochimaru and you were once the owner of the Nanabi. I believe the Raikage had got rid of your curse too, right? How interesting…"

"I supposed I have given you all the information you need. I don't think my body can hold on any longer…long journey…tired. I will go take a rest if you don't mind" – Hii cut off and walked away.

"Hold on a minute, Imai-hime. You still own us one thing." – a man spoke with a wicked smile.

Hii stared at the man coldly. She knew this would happen so better prepare herself to defend what belonged to her.

'I own nothing to no one" – Hii replied.

"Yes, you are. The Chakra, hand it over, it belongs to the Sand village, the elders will decide what to do with it."

"No, it belongs to Gaara and I'll give it back to him."

"You know it better than anyone that the Chakra is the peace treaty between the Sand village and the Cloud village. Give us the chakra and we won't make war with your beloved home village."

"Don't you dare say such things in my presence! Besides, giving the chakra to Gaara is no different from giving it to you. He's the Kazekage, he deserves it."

"It was taken from him by the Akatsuki…"

"Still, I got it back from them so I will decide who to give the chakra to, if you men want to play your game that way. Support your Kazekage, that's what you should do!"

"…"

Hii stopped to take a breath. Actually, she stopped to take control over her anger. It was unbelievable that these leaders, up till now, couldn't completely trust Gaara. After everything that Gaara had done, trying to prove himself worthy of the position, these men just took all his effort for granted. On second thought, Hii didn't dare to make the dispute any worse, which will only result in creating disadvantage for Gaara. Hii closes her eyes tightly and then…

"All of you listen up. I know after you lost your Bijuu, this village was the prey of various stronger countries. They must have thought Suna is quite vulnerable right now. You are definitely afraid of the invasion from other ninja villages, let alone invading them…"

Hii stopped to give them a smirk. It seemed like she had come to take control over the situation.

"So this is my condition, I will provide you with my ultimate defense shield. This shield will protect Suna and its people. With this absolute protection, you don't have to worry about any invasions and for the time being, and so concentrate on enhancing the state of this village. I will be with you until the threat is gone…"

"And in return you want to keep the chakra."

"I don't keep it for myself, I'll give it to Gaara, told you already."

"This thing needs some deliberation…"

"My dear gentlemen, I don't have time for that now. You have my impenetrable barrier, your Kazekage becomes more powerful, even the Hidden Cloud village can become your alliance. I believe no wise men would say no to my offer!"

Hii broke off and prayed. She had gone that far to return to Gaara what truly belonged to him and she wouldn't let these greedy people took it away. Looking at Baki, Hii could sense his support but well, his voice was not that powerful with the authorities. In the end, an elder stood up, slowly approaching Hii. He looked at her eyes for a while, long enough to see the determination in them. Then he offered a hand.

"With all the respect, princess, the wealth and power of this village are our top priority. We shall accept your condition. We will insert the chakra into Kazekage-sama…"

"No, it's me who will do it."- Hii demanded.

"Then have it your way. I just hope you can help protect this village in its hard time. We will announce your decision to Konoha and Kumo."

"Very well then! You have my words."

Hii shook hand with the old man and retreated from the stressful room. Finally, a relaxing smile appeared on her face, making it look less weary. "Let's go Kankuro, it's done", Hii said and pushed him out of the corridor of darkness.


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Nightfall

Gaara was sitting at his desk, immersing himself in his documents. Reading tons of paper had given him a terrible headache but it was still better than making the elders think he didn't care. Gaara knew he couldn't afford to give any hasty decision because he was the Kazekage, he had to take responsibility for the village. That was why he had to take time considering every suggestion –which the others wrote on paper, before carrying out actions.

_Reading…again reading…and again reading...Damn I missed dinner again._

Gaara looked up to find the clock already stroke had been quite a while since he last had dinner with Temari and Kankuro.

_From 6 to 8 almost every day of the week. Hii would say that I'm a workaholic…_

Hii. Good heaven! He hadn't seen her since this morning. Gaara buried his head in his hands, mumbling what a jerk he was. The work had attracted all of his attention, taken all of his time. Then without any delay, he grabbed his coat and dashed out of the room, almost knocked two ninjas on the ground when he ran pass them. Gaara felt so guilty and angry with himself. He felt so mad that he could, well if he could, beat himself up to teach the "Gaara-who-forgot" a lesson. He kept running, and running…

The kitchen was empty. "They must have finished with the dinner", he thought. His siblings seemed nowhere to be found. That was not a strange thing since they tent to go out for night missions. Gaara came close to the table, where a beautiful cactus rose was placed in the middle. It was surely Hii's favorite plant, thorny, strong and resilient just like her. He was about to give the flower a light touch when he heard a loud thud coming from above.

_She's here… Hii…_

Rushing upstair, Gaara found Hii standing in her room, among her messy stuff. Her long black hair was flowing along with a gust of wind blowing from the open window. Gaara noticed her hair was a little bit shorter than before but still, it was pretty. Her shiny dark eyes looked up, just in time to catch those of Gaara. They looked at each other, silently. It had been a long time since they were alone together and right now, Gaara just wanted to hold her in his arms…

"Done with your work, Gaara-kun?" – Hii asked with a gentle voice.

"Sorry, too much paper to read..." – Gaara mumbled.

"It's ok, I understand you have been busy lately. That's why didn't want to bother you..." – "ahh sorry Gaara-kun, but you are standing on my tatami."

"Oh, I didn't know…"

Gaara bent down to pick the tatami up. His hand suddenly met Hii's. A warm flow was running through his body, creating an indescribable feeling. Without knowing it, Gaara grabbed Hii's hand, held it in his, holding it tightly like he was afraid she might run away. Hii stood still, feeling the warmth from Gaara's hand. This was exactly what she dreamed of. Maybe she did fall for Gaara after all...Thinking of all the possibility, Hii blushed even more and looked away. Gaara still refused to let go and continued looking at her. His emotion wanted to take over his body. It wanted to overflow right now…

"I missed you." – Gaara blurted out

"Uhm…glad to hear that Gaara-kun. My place is a little messy, you know,…it takes time…oh what am I thinking…" – Hii stuttered and turned her back at Gaara.

"Hii, look at me…"

"Gaara-kun, I…"

Without letting Hii finish her sentence, Gaara hugged her from behind. He closed his eyes, sensing the familiar warmth of her body. Lovely, Hii still possessed the smell of wild daisy, which he found very attractive.

"Gaara-kun, are you ok, did anything happen?"

"Something terrible will happen if you refuse to stay in my arms"

"Temari and Kankuro…they may see us…"

"They're not here. Anyway, who cares!"

"This is embarrassing, Gaara-kun. I can't take it anymore…"

"Hii, please…"

Hii drew back to her silence. She didn't know what was going on in her mind anymore. Gaara's embrace had filled her with burning passion. Hii realized she couldn't hide her feelings any longer. She placed her arms on top of Gaara's and leaned her back against his chest. All of a sudden, Hii turned around, threw her arms around Gaara's neck and clung on to him. She looked at him tenderly and whispered:

"I missed you too, Gaara-kun. I missed you so much…"

Surprised by this sudden confession, Gaara couldn't do anything but stare at her unblinkingly. He felt so blissful, so blessed. Without any hesitation, he hugged her tightly in return. Hii pulled him even closer to her, leaning her cheek against his neck. Her hand was now playing with his brick-red hair, which she loved so much. Gaara's eyes shut close. He wanted to enjoy this amazing moment…no, he wanted this moment to last forever.

"You know, I was a little upset when you didn't come to see me earlier." Hii muttered under her breath.

"So you did want me to find you. That's why I intend to keep you waiting." – Gaara replied.

"Not because you forgot?"

"Well could I? Don't question me, hug me."

Gaara held Hii tighter in his arms. A white lie shouldn't be a problem should it? If it hadn't been for the work, he could…

"Gaara-kun, even if you forgot, I didn't mind at all. I was just joking."

"Don't…"

"More importantly, you are here with me now."

Hii now took Gaara's face in her hands, admiring every feature of it. She noticed his hands were still on her waist, gently caressing her. At this very moment, their feelings just wanted to outburst. It was love, the love they had been hiding for 4 years. Gaara wanted to confess his love to Hii this instance. He just couldn't wait any longer. Without words, Gaara slowly moved his hand towards her nape, pulling her face closer to his. Hii looked into Gaara's beautiful blue eyes, which had been mesmerizing her for years, and got his intention. She left a light touch on his lips before closing her eyes, ready for a kiss. Gaara brought his face closer. The atmosphere was so nervous. They could even hear their heartbeats now. Their lips were inches away…

"Hii-chan, what's u…"

Temari was numb, mouth dropped shockingly. Was it her getting delusion or was it true that her younger brother was kissing Hii? Gaara turned his head around, probably annoyed.

"Don't you have missions to carry out?" – Gaara asked.

"Not tonight, Gaara…not tonight…" – Temari replied with excitement.

Then it was followed by a deadly silence. Hii kept her eyes on the floor, feeling the heat on her cheek. Temari seemed to enjoy herself, looking from Hii to Gaara while trying to hold her laughter. Gaara had no choice but to pretend looking at nowhere. No one spoke a word… After that embarrassing moment, Gaara looked at Hii warmly for the last time and decided to leave.

"See you two tomorrow. At work!" – Gaara said

"Did I miss something?" – Temari whispered

"Well, you did spoil something." – Hii said with a mysterious smile.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Persuasion

When morning arrived, brilliant sunlights shined over every corner of Suna, reaching even to the darkest spot. Under the glorious sun, the village looked more magnificent than ever. The golden sand became sparkle, just like those in the fairytales. Once or twice, soft breezes mildly blew over the ground, inviting the dust to join them. Together, they created a magical curtain of smoke. There on the street, groups of children often ran around, showing off their toy puppets to their fellows.

"That toy's sure popular in this place." – Hii mumbled while observing the kids. Such a nice morning that was worth enjoying. The biggest problem seemed to be the air temperature had gone much higher than the last time she was here. But living in this village meant you had to adapt to its climate, and well, loved it. Hii smiled to herself when imaging Gaara had to suffer all this heat and yet he still refused to shorten his sleeves. Her face suddenly turned red when she thought about Gaara. Last night was awesome, it would be much better if they could actually kiss. Hii looked aimlessly at her fan, recalling the important moment. They were so close. Hii could remember his look, his warmth, his breath and…so much more…

"You will get sunburn if you dress like this, Hii-chan." – Temari said.

Hii looked up and gave her a bright smile. It was quite funny when she didn't ask Hii much about what happened last night in details. Temari sat down next to Hii and ordered some kind of mixed fruit juice. The Cactus snack bar had been their favorite hangout ever since Hii came to the village. Temari took a sip of her beverage and looked at Hii again.

"Honestly, Hii-chan, you should think of your skin too. Your shorts and tank-top won't help you much under Suna's sunlight even though you wear some bandages to cover up…Well, it does look fashionable though…"

"But it's too hot here, Temari-neechan. I got all sweaty wearing those long-sleeved clothes. Besides, I got my cloak right here." – Hii said and patted her cloak.

"Suit you then..." – Temari sighed, "And how was the barrier, has it done?"

"I finished setting it up an hour ago. As long as I stay in the Land of Wind, the shield will be at its best condition, although…"

"Although?"

"Never mind... I should be heading to Gaara's office right now, hope his meeting is over. Nice day nee-chan. Ah and the drink is on me!"

"Good luck" – Temari suddenly giggled.

Waving at Temari, Hii tried to smile widely at her to hide the dizzy feeling she had. Frankly, she felt extremely exhausted and could hardly stand on her feet. Everything seemed so blurry in front of her eyes. Setting up that barrier was no easy job, since it demanded patience, accuracy and sacrifice of the…"No, I must not let them worry about me", Hii shook her head and stood straight. Using a kind of speeding jutsu, she then hurled towards the main building without any difficulties.

The winds seemed no less fierce than yesterday. However, the sound they bumped against the glass windows couldn't distract Gaara from his thoughts. Gaara couldn't believe Hii had gone all the way to get back the chakra from Shukaku. He knew the elders definitely had no reason to be untruthful but this was too much for him to take. Knowing Hii had risked her life for something he should have done on his own, Gaara felt ashamed of himself. He stood up and placed a hand on a window glass, observing. Usually Hii would follow the main entrance, which meant passing the window where he was standing. It was already 10 but she wasn't here yet. Gaara felt the urge to have a serious conversation with Hii about the chakra matter. He would absolutely make her promise not to do anything reckless again.

_But who am I to demand such thing…_

Gaara sighed, imagining her adorable smile in his head, vividly. There were times when Gaara couldn't understand what Hii was thinking. Sometimes, she was so gentle and soft, and reasonable; but the other times, she was unbearably stubborn and impulsive, just like, well, Naruto.

"I thought you wouldn't come" – said Gaara

"No fair, I thought you couldn't notice me coming in" – Hii said disappointedly – "Guess my move still needs perfection".

Giving Gaara a tender smile, Hii placed the herbal tea which she carefully prepared for him on the table. Actually, this had been a habit of her ever since she moved to Suna to help Gaara control the Shukaku. Gaara looked at the cup, feeling touched that Hii cared a great deal about him. He looked at Hii again and gave her a grin. Hii casually throw herself on the couch and lied there when she realized she couldn't stand any longer. "I hope Gaara won't notice my tiredness", Hii thought.

"You look pale"- Gaara said while kneeling down, placing a hand on her face.

"You should have your eyes checked more frequently, Gaara-kun" – Hii laughed.

"The elders told me about what you did. Honestly Hii, you are an idiot…"

So Gaara finally knew about the meeting she had with the authorities. Hii pretended looking at the ceiling to avoid Gaara's eyes. She knew what Gaara wanted to say next. He would make her promise not to do anything dangerous, that she should consider all the possible options before making any move. But that wasn't what she worried about. The real problem was to talk Gaara into accepting the Shukaku's chakra, which he detested. Gaara had long loathed the Bijuu which was sealed inside his body and everything related to it. When that beast was removed from his body, Gaara had worked very hard to prove that he didn't need to depend on its strength to be a powerful ninja. Besides, he was afraid the villagers would hate him again if they knew he still had a part of Shukaku within his body. His pride and his concern were the two things that troubled Hii the most. However, this was all Hii's assumption. She still didn't know how Gaara would react to her offer…

"Hii, are you listening?" – Gaara asked, lifting his eye in displeasure.

"Yes, of course. I'm waiting for you to finish" – Hii lied and grinned at him.

Closing his eyes, Gaara sighed with relief. Then, he took her hands in his and continued.

"I appreciate what you did to me pretty much. As I said, I have no rights to prevent you from going on any risky missions but if those missions concern me, I will go with you."

"Don't be ridiculous Gaara-kun. You are the Kazekage now, you can't leave the village at your will!"

"But if they concern me, I should at least take responsibility. Like the Shukaku's chakra thing…"

"Well, your responsibility now is to let me get that thing inside your body."

Gaara suddenly stood up, turning his back at Hii.

"Hii, you WEREN'T listening at all" – he said coldly –"There is no way I will let that chakra flow in my blood."

Hii sat up, staring at Gaara's back. The situation had gotten worse since Gaara sounded so serious now. Hii knew she should come up with a good tactic or else, all her effort would be in vain. She hated it when Gaara was in a bad mood because he wouldn't listen to anything. Gaara discreetly glanced back at Hii, seeing her sad face was also unbearable to him. But what could he do, he didn't want anyone to think that he relied on Shukaku's strength once again. More precisely, he himself didn't want to depend on its chakra to become more powerful. Gaara didn't know his pride was an honorable thing or it might just be stupid and bullheaded. Gaara then decided to get himself out of this crisis. Grabbing his gourd, Gaara walked towards the door in front of Hii's astonishing eyes. Knowing Gaara just wanted to get away, Hii stood up and seized his hand, pulling him back. She wouldn't let him go that easily, especially leaving without telling her a word. Besides, she hadn't settled the business with him yet, how dare him walked away from her like that. Gaara turned his head around, trying to keep a straight face when seeing Hii's frowning face.

"Gaara-kun, this is the last time I want you…"

Before Hii could finish her line, Gaara pull her toward him with such a strong force that she bumped against his chest. Gaara slowly ran his hand through her beautiful black hair and whispered into her right ear.

"Don't you get tired telling me all these stuffs? Well, I do. Let's do something else."

"Gaara-kun…"

"Tonight, same time, same place. Don't be late!"

Gaara then released her hand and walked out of the door, leaving Hii with a blushed face. Hii held her trembling hand on her lips. Somehow Gaara's warmth had filled her with strange embarrassment and excitement. Hii closed the door and left the office. It was sizzling hot out there but it didn't concern her anymore.

Tonight would be very special…


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Moonlight

The ice-cold wind splashed through Gaara's face vigorously, leaving him another chill. This had been the third one ever since he arrived at the village's back gate. Suna's climate was undoubtedly irritating, for new comers as well as for long-timed habitants. In daytime the heat was nearly unendurable but at night, the shivering cold took over the place. Holding his scarf against his neck, Gaara patiently waited for Hii to come. Since tonight Gaara planned to do something special, he was quite nervous and somehow he ended up coming to the meeting place early.

_Don't be reserved, just tell her the truth. Breathe Gaara…breathe…_

Being busy arranging his ideas for the conversation, Gaara didn't notice Hii standing in front of his face with her eyes wide opened. Hii let out a giggle, which reddened Gaara's face. She could tell that Gaara was thinking profoundly about an issue, which must be an important one, if not he would see her immediately.

"Hope you didn't have a stomachache, Gaara-kun" – Hii teased.

"Can we go already?" – Gaara asked and looked away.

Despite how much Gaara loved Hii's pretty eyes, he had to avoid them to cover his embarrassment when being caught off guard. Hii gave him a lovely smile then reached out for his hand. Together, they rushed out of the village, crossing the vast sandy areas of the desert. Hii didn't forget to cast a shield around her and Gaara, so that no one could detect their chakra. Therefore, there would be no chance for anyone to follow them. The moon seemed to be their guidance since it was shining so brightly tonight. They kept on moving until they caught sight of an oasis, hidden behind a mysterious mist. Its scenery was so familiar; nothing had changed much since the last time they were here. The lively palm trees stood side by side in a line, embracing a mirror-like lake. On the ground, cacti grew everywhere, together with little purple flowers. Hii called those cute flowers "Amethyst" since she didn't know their real name. Recalling the past, Hii remembered how hard she tried to find a place like this where she could help Gaara control his Shukaku, and taught him how to swim. From that time till now, this place had been their secret hideout, conserved most of their precious memories with each other. Gaara put down his gourd, let it lean against a big rock and started stretching his arms. Carrying it along the way was sure inconvenient but a ninja mustn't abandon his weapon." Caution was priority", he thought for himself. Gaara looked up to find Hii standing on the water surface with such a relaxing posture. Her hands stretched out, trying to catch a glimpse of wind flowing through her fingers. Gaara came closer to Hii, quietly; his hand was about to touch her silky hair when she suddenly ran to the middle of the lake. There, she stunned him with an exotic dance. Her body flexibly moved in a charming and rhythmic way, although there was no music around. Gaara was watching attentively, so attentively like he was afraid of missing even a tiny part of her dance. He knew Hii always had a talent in dancing or stuffs like that, but he never knew she was such an incredible performer until this moment. Hii then made a gorgeous spin on top of her toe while her body was in the arabesque position. The spin became faster and faster, and at the same time, Gaara heard an enticing sound…from the wind.

_It can't be, the wind is creating the music. I must be dreaming…_

Right now, Gaara couldn't believe his eyes anymore. Hii was lifted in mid-air by the wind surrounding her. Every time she waved her arms around, Gaara could see the motion of the wind also. Hii was like a goddess, hypnotizing him with her magical performance. The music Gaara heard and her movement matched perfectly, making the dance even more irresistible. The wind seemed to follow her everywhere, clinging on to her body. A moment later, Hii landed on the water again, smiling lovingly at Gaara. He stared at her, speechless. Hii took a few steps towards Gaara, wondering why he was so quiet.

"You know, Gaara-kun, it's the "Goddess of wind" dance. My grandpa said mom used to perform this dance to wake the wind's spirit up. You heard the" music", right?" – Hii asked.

Gaara simply nodded at her. He was still imagining the enchanting scenery happened just now.

"Do you like it?" – Hii asked softly.

"I think so." – Gaara replied indifferently.

"Come one, Gaara-kun. I practiced that dance for you! Can't you comment in a more emotional tone? Like last night perhaps…" – Hii said, feeling herself blushing again.

"I don't remember last night" – Gaara said wickedly.

"How could you? You said you missed me and you held my hand, and you hugged me and…and…"

"And?"

"Gaara-kun, don't tease me!"

Hii's face had become completely red now. She hated it when Gaara purposely picked on her, making her admit every truth in her mind. All of a sudden, she felt Gaara's breath on her cheek. He had teleported to her place when she was deep in thought. His breath was so warm and the way he breathed against her skin made her tremble with excitement. Gaara leisurely moved his lips to Hii's earlobe, slightly touching it. He whispered:

"I have something special to tell you so you'd better hear it clear and hear it good"

Gaara stopped to find himself more courage. Even though he had spent a day preparing for this moment, somehow the words seemed too hard to come out. Confessing one's love was sure troublesome even to a top-class ninja like Gaara. At this instance, Gaara would rather go on an S rank mission than saying those magical three words. Hii's breath was steadily passing his neck, making it more challenging for Gaara to speak his mind.

_S rank missions are much, much easier than this…_

"Hii, we have known each other for such a long time. To me, you are more than just a friend. You are…you are… my family, my savior. Without you I can never learn how to suppress the Shukaku. You have given me the motivation to move forward…"

Silence.

"The more time I spent with you, the more I realize how precious you are to my life. One year without you was such a torment. Hii, I want to tell you I…uhm…I…"

"I love you Gaara-kun." – Hii blurted out.

Gaara froze, hoping he didn't mishear anything. His heart was beating crazily, especially when his eyes looked directly into Hii's. Hii stared at Gaara for a while then looked down at her feet. Her face was all red. Her hands agitatedly held on to one another. It seemed like Hii had collected all her strength and bravery to tell Gaara how much she loved him.

"I can't help myself anymore Gaara-kun. I…I have fallen in love with you the first time I looked into your eyes. The Chuunin exam…you may think it's unbelievable Gaara-kun… but it is true…" –Hii said with a smile.

"I don't know if it was love at first sight or not but you had stolen my heart back then, Gaara-kun. People hated you, scared of you but I…I felt safe with you. The fearfulness wasn't what I saw in your eyes, I saw only sadness and sorrow. That's why I often searched for you on the rooftop at nights. I want to be with you, to save you from those negative emotions…"

Listening to Hii's words, Gaara found himself struck in astonishment. It was completely unexpected to know that Hii actually saw the pain Gaara thought he had buried deep in his mind. Come to think of it, every time Gaara felt lonely, Hii was the only one by his side. Every time the Shukaku was about to take control over his emotion, Hii always appeared in time. 4 years ago, no one had recognized him as a human being but Hii was the first one who did, then Naruto. Gaara found himself lost for words. He placed his hands on Hii's shoulders, looking at her intensely.

"You knew I was a monster but you still loved me?" –Gaara asked.

"You have never been a monster to me. Even the time you attacked me, I didn't see you as a monster either. Gaara-kun, I couldn't bear seeing you have to suffer alone. It hurts me, too. And…and I missed you at that time so I transferred to Suna to stay with you. I even gave up my search for my family so that I could aid you when you needed help. Honestly, Gaara-kun, the period I spent with you was the happiest moment in my life…"

Hii tried to hold back her tears in the corner of her eyes and continued.

"When you died in the hand of Akatsuki, I thought I couldn't live either. If it wasn't granny Chiyo who stopped me, I would have use the tensei jutsu to bring you back. You are my dearest person in this world, Gaara-kun, without you my life would become meaningless. I'm willing to do anything for you…"

"Wait, so the main purpose of your last journey was to retrieve the chakra for me, not finding your family?" –Gaara asked in disbelief.

"Well, both…but you are right Gaara-kun. I didn't encounter the Akatsuki on the way. I deliberately found them. But don't talk about that anymore. I did come back, Gaara-kun, I come back because I don't want to be separated from you…"

Gaara suddenly embraced Hii tightly. This girl had been through hell for his sake. Gaara felt he should not hold back any longer.

"Hii, stop it. You don't have to say anymore. Seeing the woman I love have to go through all the troubles for me is really painful. Hii, I love you too, so please let me protect you in the future. That's a job a boyfriend should do."

Feeling Hii wrapping her arms around his waist, Gaara felt his determination was getting greater. He lifted her chin up and gave her a grin.

"You're special, you know. You have captured my attention ever since I saw you sitting with Sasuke on the tree. I have to admit, I longed for your company every night during the time we stayed in Konoha. Your presence had brought peace to my soul, calmed the monster inside me. I owed you a lot, Hii…"

Gaara halted to wipe the tear of happiness on Hii's face. He drowned himself in the warm look from her eyes then brought his face a little closer to hers.

"As time passed, I realized I have fallen in love with you, Hii. I love you, truthfully…"

Their faces had come closer.

"Please be by my side, Gaara-kun."

Closer…

"I will never leave you, Hii."

The timeline seemed to be blocked when their lips tenderly met one another. At this moment, they had emerged in their own world, neglecting the scenery around. Gaara couldn't avoid his clumsiness at first but thing started to go smoothly after all. They closed their eyes, enjoying the passion that their first kiss brought about. Gaara held Hii against his chest, feeling every heartbeat from the girl whom he loved with all his life. Hii placed her hands on Gaara's back, delicately caressing him. Gaara pressed his lips against Hii's, admiring hers softness. He kissed her more affectionately. Their lips lingered on each other, hungry for more. Hii unconsciously glued her body to Gaara's, tasting the sweetness of his lips. It appeared that the sand didn't get in the way at all. Undoubtedly, Gaara had freed himself from his absolute defense. Brushing her lips on Gaara's lovingly, Hii kissed him harder. Her heart was melt by the passion of his kiss, the warmth of his body. They continued kissing until Hii broke off at the need for air. Looking at each other unblinkingly, they let out a small giggle. Never before had Hii been this embarrassed and so did Gaara. She slowly rested her head on Gaara's shoulder, adoring his scent. Gaara wrapped his arms around Hii, determined not to let her go.

"From this moment, you belong to me."- Gaara decided.

"As long as you're faithful to me, Gaara-kun, I'm yours" – Hii smiled back.

"I promise you I will. I swear on the honor of a ninja and a Kazekage that I will never betray you."

"I trust you Gaara-kun. Let the moon be our witness tonight."

Gaara smiled and put a hand behind Hii's head, pulling her close. He kissed the tip of her nose then brushed his lips down to her lips again. Hii seemed to take pleasure in his kiss. She parted her lips and kissed Gaara back. It would be better if this night could be longer, Hii didn't want to be apart from Gaara just yet.

"Now, how should I call you? Imai Nori, Hii-chan or just "my love"?" – Gaara asked with a grin.

"I think "Hii" is better…" – she giggles, "…I'm not use being called "Imai Nori", though it's my real name. Hmm…adding "chan", by you, seems weird to me. And if you call me your love, I definitely won't leave you alone!"

As she finished, Hii leaned against Gaara to give him a light kiss, proving she wasn't kidding. Gaara was floating with joyfulness. He already thought of calling Hii his love more often, maybe he would get more special treats. Smiling contently with himself, Gaara put one arm around Hii's waist, walking her back to the shore. Hii took a look at the moon shining gorgeously above their head, wondering if she could sleep well tonight. Her andrenaline was rising so high that made her want to jump blissfully into mid air. Gaara's arm hadn't left her waist. On the contrary, it was holding her even more strongly. Hii placed her hands on her chest to secure her heart which might jump out at any moment. Gaara looked at Hii in amusement. She always looked adorable when she was embarrassed like this. But…Gaara remembered there was still something he needed to tell Hii. He then let go of her body and walked forward. Automatically, Hii sensed there would be crucial issues coming up, since Gaara was facing his back at her. It was always a sign of him trying to get serious. Hii held her breath a waited.

"You know, I would be a bad boyfriend if I stubbornly denied a sincere request from my girlfriend. So I will give you a chance." – Gaara said in a calmed tone.

"What do you mean, Gaara-kun?" – Hii asked.

"I won't accept the Shukaku chakra unless you beat me in combat. If you win, I will do it. If you lose, we shall never discuss this matter again. And I have to say…I'm also curious about how much you have progressed after your journey."

"You make it sound easy to me, Gaara-kun. Challenge accepted!"

"Don't get overconfident, Hii. The challenger always has some advantages. Besides, there's something will surprise you."

As he finished, Gaara turned around and gave Hii a kiss on her forehead.

The moon was brighter than ever…


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Feelings

Gaara was lying in his bed, half-asleep. The dream he just had was somehow terrifying, terrifying enough to wake him up. All he saw was blood draining all over the place, numerous corpses lying soullessly under his feet. Gaara thought in horror that he could be the murderer. But no, it couldn't be. The scenery was like a battlefield, war flags were flying above his head, weapons scattered all over the ground. Through that bloody scene, Gaara did recognize something…Black cloak…red clouds…Akatsuki!

Gaara sat up abruptly, feeling extremely uneasy. He didn't know if this dream could be a sign that something unpleasant was going to happened or not. Glancing at the clock, he realized it was 7 already. Since today he had training with his student, Matsuri, he didn't need to present at the office. Besides, Hii could help him with his load of work. Gaara suddenly found himself smiling. It had been 2 days since they officially became a couple. Hii had been stopping by his office more frequently, dedicatedly helping him with his paper. What Gaara found interesting was that Hii seemed to get embarrassed easier when she was alone with him. This is such a new side of her that Gaara hadn't fully discovered before. He recalled years ago when they were younger, Hii wasn't that easy to blush even when they had to sleep together. Gaara smirked when he remembered how shy Hii behaved when he asked her to move into the main building with him. She continuously shook her head and baffled about things like they had been adults now, there should be some boundaries and other stuffs but Gaara knew for sure she was just too embarrassed to agree.

_What a pitty…if she was here might be I could have slept better._

Gaara thought while putting on his clothes. Secured his gourd on the back, Gaara open the door and walked out, just in time to see Kankuro having breakfast in the corridor_._ His brother was always wearing those funny looking make-up, which Gaara learnt that it was influenced from Kabuki style. Kankuro had ever been a puppet maniac since he was little. The puppets in his collection were countless, some were his toys back when he was a kid and the rest was his lethal weapons. But Gaara guessed Kankuro must have turned all his toy puppets into weapons by now because he noticed Kankuro would introduce a new puppet weapon every week. Last Saturday, he told Gaara about his latest one, which he developed from the puppet that Gaara broke during their childhood. That was quite a memory. Then Gaara saw Kankuro looked up, staring at him.

"Oi Gaara. Why staring at me like I'm a ghost, man?"

"I'm wondering where your puppet friends are." – Gaara replied.

"Nah guess you and Temari are right after all. If I kept hanging around them I would have no friends, worse no girlfriend!"

Gaara nearly laughed when he saw his brother's frowning face. Recently, Kankuro had complained that Gaara had taken all the girls' attention. Now he knew that Gaara actually had a girlfriend, he became even more depressed. Even though he had self-comforted by the idea that Suna girls would drive their attention to the Kazekage's brother instead, it seemed like he was completely wrong.

"I'm heading to the training ground. Later." – Gaara said.

"Ok…oh wait. Gaara, MY SANDWICHES!" – Kankuro yelled.

Successfully sneaked one of his brother's sandwiches out of his hands, Gaara rushed to the main building's entrance. Kankuro was always slower than him, which Gaara found as a weakness to bully his older brother. Looking up to his office's window, Gaara wondered if Hii was there. He would really much want to stop by his office but the time didn't allow him to. Moreover, he would set a bad example for Matsuri if he was late. Taking a bite of his food, Gaara then told himself that he would have plenty of time with Hii later.

_Let's move into my building…Why not? We're lovers after all…Come on, you slept in my room before, what's the big deal…You will have your own room there, not like I force you to sleep in the same room with me though…Well then, just give it a thought…_

Gaara's words were running around in Hii's head, making it harder for her to concentrate. Honestly, the idea of living together with Gaara was quite tempting. Never before had Hii felt the urge to be closer to Gaara than this time. The flashback of the night 2 days ago couldn't leave her alone. The fact that Gaara confessed his love for her still made her feel like on cloud nine. And the living-together suggestion…

"I'm exaggerating again, he just asked to me live in the building, NOT his room…"

Hii thought and bumped her head against her fist. She really needed to get back to Gaara's paper or else she would mess things up. Lying on the couch again, Hii tried to figure out a way to conquer her headache. Late-night drink with Temari yesterday was great but they both ended up drunk terribly and Kankuro was having a bad time carrying them home. Hii had to beg him not to tell Gaara because she knew that was something the Kazekage wouldn't like to hear. Squeezing her forehead intensely, she suddenly remembered Gaara's challenge. She got 5 days to prepare, now only 3 left. Deep down in her heart, she did feel anxious about battling with Gaara. Hii wondered what he meant by saying he would surprise her. Could it be a brand new jutsu? Could it be that Gaara actually reached the level of a Bijuu without the help of Shukaku? Hii tried to come up with all the cases and found herself even more worried. Thankfully she was a fast-learner so she could receive serious training and learn new high-leveled jutsu from Raikage and Bee-sama in such a short time. But this was Gaara…and he was no ordinary rival. However, Hii couldn't afford to lose. Her failure would make her trip be meaningless and besides, she hated losing to a boy. Hii pretty much didn't want Gaara to think that he was superior to her…

"But accept to live with him doesn't meant I admit defeat right? Oh god, I'm thinking about it again…"- Hii mumbled, rolling on the couch-"…just in his building, NOT his room, not his room, not his room, not…"

"Whose room could that be, Hii-sama?"

Hii looked up to find her facing with Matsuri, who was looking back at her in such a curious manner. Since she was Gaara's student, his siblings and Hii considered Matsuri to be part of the family. Trying to hide her blushing face, Hii replied:

"Oh nothing, Matsuri-san. But why are you so formal all of a sudden? I remember you called me "Hii-chan"…"

"Well Hii-sama, right now you're Gaara-sensei's girlfriend so I guess I should address you more properly"- Matsuri said with a forced smile.

"You know about that, too? That Gaara-kun and I…"

"Hii-sama, the whole village knows about it. It would be weird if I don't" – Matsuri let out a small giggle.

"I understand. But you shouldn't change the way you call me because of that, Matsuri-san. I only have you and Temari as sisters in Suna village. Besides, I'm not Gaara-kun's wife or anything like that. The "Hii-sama" thing sounds so distance."

"Oh ok, Hii-chan. Is that better?"

Hii grinned widely at Matsuri but from the inside she was secretly observing her. Hii could never understand why Matsuri always acted so uncomfortably at her presence. In the past, they did hang out and had some chit chats with each other but it seemed like Masturi had nailed a distance between them. Right now, Matsuri couldn't bring herself to sit with her like normal friends did. That was strange. Hii hoped it was only her imagination but Matsuri's awkward reactions had proven her suspicion. There were times when Hii doubted if Gaara was the reason for that…

"Tell me Matsuri-san, where have you been? I hardly saw you in the village since my return."

"Oh I was going on some missions. Since the day I became Genin, I got a lot of work…Hmmm, or you didn't notice me because you were busy sticking around Gaara-sensei, Hii-channnn…"

"That's enough teasing Matsuri-san. You embarrass me…Ah I heard you have training this morning. I don't think you should come late, Gaara-kun is a discipline teacher…"

"I planned to stop by his office and asked him to go with me. But well, he wasn't here."

"Yeah, that's why he asked me to take care of his paper for him. Nothing urgent though, people should learn to be more patient sometimes…Okay… since I have nothing to do, I will go with you to the training!"

"You what?"

"Go with you. I really want to see what tricks you guys have. I know you don't mind, Matsuri-san!"

Hii stood up and grabbed her katana. The thought of giving Gaara a nice morning surprise excited her. For some reasons, she wanted to see his face so badly. Guess it could be a normal reaction to those in love but well, Hii didn't care anymore. Passing Matsuri, Hii didn't notice a vague sign of displease on her face. The two girls leave the building in silence and dashed through the dusty streets leading to the training ground.

Gaara was standing with his back against a woody pillar, folding his arms patiently. Usually he wouldn't have any objection to being late for a few minutes because even he couldn't be on time in some occasions. But Matsuri had crossed the limit 5-minutes late today, which Gaara thought he would punish her for that. However, waiting for Matsuri gave him the time to rethink about his brutal dream lately. Gaara normally didn't believe in fortunetelling dream but this one was so different. It gave him such an insecure feeling, so annoying. He knew the village would be safe for now since it was inside Hii's legendary barrier but it didn't mean he could let his guard down…

"Sorry I'm late, Gaara-sensei!" – Matsuri said in a cheerful voice.

"No excuse, 300 rounds, hurry up." – Gaara ordered.

"There there, Gaara-kun, don't be harsh. It's all my fault that she's late."

Gaara turned his head around just to see Hii smiling face while her arms were wrapping around his neck. It seemed like she had successfully managed to sneak behind his back this time. That was lucky though, since Gaara never expected her to show up like this. Nevertheless, Gaara felt so happy to see her this early in the morning. Her presence had always freshen his mind and somehow given him a peaceful feeling. Hii quickly gave Gaara a kiss on his cheek, well, she really loved doing so. Gaara grinned and grabbed Hii's wrist, swinging her in front of him. He secured his hand on her back to prevent her from falling. Hii caught Gaara's blue eyes…

"Why not on my lips?" – Gaara asked.

"Don't be such a bad boy, Matsuri-san is here…" – Hii said in a low voice, while blushing intensely-"…but Gaara-kun, you look tired. Did you have a nightmare?"

"I will tell you about that later. Anyway, hope you didn't attend my class because you want to find my weaknesses…" – Gaara said, stroking the tip of Hii's nose.

"Come on, I don't need to cheat to win. Just throw all of your secret moves at me coz I love surprises." – Hii teased back.

Their fingers lingered on each other for the last time before Gaara came to Matsuri's place to begin their lesson. As for Hii's part, she entertained herself by trying to carry Gaara's gourd on her back. Hii could hear Gaara was warning from afar that she would break her bones but Hii just ignored him. Eventually, she failed. Hii was amazed at how heavy the gourd was but its weight seemed to be nothing to Gaara. He carried it all the time but his movement was even faster than an elite ninja. "I underestimated you, sandy gourd", Hii thought and pat it lightly. Sitting down next to it, Hii drew her attention to Matsuri. She had probably become prettier and more mature than before. Being 1 year older than Hii, Matsuri never acted like a big sister like Temari did, in fact she didn't talk much around Hii either. That was also weird…Right now, Matsuri was instructed to perform an advance sand clone jutsu but it looked like she didn't quite get it right. Her sand clone slowly fell to the ground, which reminded Hii pretty much of Naruto since he used to show her how failed he was at cloning technique when she was in Konoha. To be honest, Matsuri wasn't an excellent ninja but she did have will-power. Maybe it would take her a month to learn a jutsu which others learnt in a week…

Gaara's loud voice suddenly caught Hii's attention again. Come to think of it, his voice was so warm and dedicate although his face didn't show much emotion. He patiently explained to Matsuri and continued making her practice that jutsu until she could get a glimpse of it. Hii looked attentively at Gaara. Seriously, she couldn't get her eye off him. Seeing him at work like this was interesting. Hii found Gaara so…sexy. There was no other word that Hii could think of; maybe she had a naughty side after all. His earnest facial expression, his manly posture make her want to…embrace him. Hii imagined her hands traveling freely on the Kazekage's body, stroking his red hair, fondling from his shoulder to his chest…while her lips were brushing against his neck…

"Look like someone needs a hug." – Gaara smirked.

Hii jumped out of her skin when she heard Gaara saying that. Her little fantasy had prevented her from seeing the real Gaara approaching. He kneeled on one leg then brought his face closer to hers. Hii swiftly hid her face behind her hands, mumbling she didn't know what Gaara was talking about. Through her fingers, Hii could see Gaara was giving her a seriously-I-know your-fantasy look, which she thought could embarrass her to death.

"What naughty thoughts did you have?" – Gaara asked while pulling Hii's hands away from her face.

"None of your business, Gaara-kun!" – Hii said stubbornly.

"You mumbled something like "huggy huggy… hug me, hug me". Matsuri, you heard her too, right?"

"I…uhm...I didn't notice that. Uhmmm… Gaara-sensei…"

Both Gaara and Hii were looking at Matsuri. That was strange to see Matsuri without her energetic speaking style.

"I'm wondering if we could go out for a drink. Sensei and I…and Hii-chan too, of course." Matsuri said with a smile.

"Sorry Matsuri but I've had plan with this lady already. Maybe other time." Gaara replied

Matsuri then quickly bow to Gaara and left the training ground. Looking back, she saw Gaara was still trying to pull Hii's hands away; they looked so intimate…and so good together.

Suddenly, tears were dropping down her face.


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: A new threat

Walking along the street, Matsuri tried to get rid of her agony. Her heart hurt so badly, like someone was stabbing it with a sharp blade again and again. Sweeping the tears from her face, Matsuri bitterly remembered the time when she was with Gaara, alone. Those days were so happy…Ever since the day Gaara rescued her from those ninjas of the Hidden Cloud Matsuri had developed strong affection for him. If only Hii didn't get in the way… But deep down inside, Matsuri knew she was in no position to say so because Hii was Gaara's friend even before he took Matsuri to be his apprentice. It was just she thought she would have chance…That was why Matsuri put in her best effort, training to become a powerful ninja in the hope that Gaara would notice her. That was why she felt much more comfortable when Hii wasn't around. Frankly, she couldn't stand seeing Gaara and Hii were getting closer as time passed. When Hii was away from the village, Matsuri saw nothing but sadness in her sensei's eyes. He used to stare into space with such loneliness that Matsuri couldn't do anything to help. Matsuri remembered the time she caught Gaara standing at the village's gate, looking like he was waiting for Hii to come back. She couldn't stand it either. She had tried everything in her ability to cheer Gaara up but it just didn't work. Why couldn't he understand that she could also make him feel happy, feel loved? Why did it have to be Hii?

"What's the hell had happened to you?"

Sari was standing in front of Matsuri, looking concerned. Being Matsuri's best friend, Sari would be ready to beat up anyone who dared to bully Matsuri, especially those who made Matsuri cry like this were completely unforgivable. Shaking her friend's shoulders forcefully, Sari insisted her friend on telling her the truth while Matsuri just stood there, smiling in tears. She didn't want Sari to know the real reason of her sadness because that would only make her friend become more worried. Besides, Sari was one of Hii's students and she admired Hii just like she admired the Kazekage. She used to tell Matsuri about how cool her new shielding technique that Hii taught her was and claimed that her class was the most relaxing compared to others. Matsuri sighed…

"I know, you poor thing. Kazekage-sama scolded you again, didn't he?" – Sari said.

"It wasn't like that." – Matsuri replied.

"What else could it be? Hey, need me to tell Hii-sensei to "take care of him" for you?" Sari suggested with an evil smile.

"No, DON'T! Just don't…" Matsuri said, looking at the ground.

"Fine then. Let's have some snacks before our mission. I've just receive it from the mission counter."

Wiping Matsuri's last tear on the corner of her eye, Sari smiled and led her friend to a nearby food stall. Matsuri looked up and suddenly noticed Gaara was walking with Hii from afar, hand in hand. Gaara was acting cool as normally but Matsuri could see how delightful he was through his eyes. Hii was smiling at him…and…Gaara actually grinned back at her…only her…though for a moment. Matsuri's pain unexpectedly came back, torturing her. She stood back and shook her head fiercely, trying to calm down. Her heart, it was aching. It was all too late…

"Wow, Kazekage-sama and Hii-sensei, how cute. Matsuri…eh Matsuri?"

"Sorry Sari, but you have to do the mission alone. I'm not going…"

Matsuri turned around, ignoring her friend's astounding look, and ran as fast as she could to her house. Right now, Matsuri only wanted to be alone, completely alone. She never knew witnessing those two together was such a pain. She was unaware of the fact that her feelings toward the Kazekage weren't pure admiration any more, it had turned into something greater…"Love", perhaps…Avoiding her neighbors' curious eyes, Matsuri slammed the door behind her back then threw herself on her bed. Matsuri thought she could lie here for the rest of the day.

Ding…dong…dong.

Matsuri was lying quietly, pretending she wasn't home.

Ding…dong…dong.

Matsuri closed her eyes…

"Matsuri-san, it's me, Johou!"

Matsuri opened her eyed immediately, "Johou-senpai…"

"Johou-san? The nerdy Johou?" – Hii asked in disbelieved.

"Yes it's him. It turned out quite a surprise for me, too when he was nominated to be one of the council members. What can I say…It never occurs to me that he's such an elite strategy analyzer and…well, his profile is clean. Guess it's enough for the authority to include him the council…" – Gaara said.

Hii nodded at Gaara and placed her head on his shoulder again. The whole view of Suna, looking from the terrace of the main building, was magnificent. Such an artistic village…Looking at beautiful scenery never bored Hii one bit. As least, she knew it was her hobby…

"Still, I don't like that guy." – Gaara suddenly spoke.

"Do you have any reason for that, Gaara-kun?" Hii asked, looking up at him.

"Let's see…what kind of person do you think he is, Hii?"

"Well…as I said…he's nerdy!" – Hii giggled –"I think he's a nice person, always smiling and goofing around, but to some extend I find it a bit…too much, you know what I mean, Gaara-kun?"

Gaara nodded.

"Yeah…but in general I don't think there should be any problem with him." – Hii said

"His eyes…I don't like the look in his eyes. It's annoying and fake."

"I was only an acquaintance of him so I don't know, Gaara-kun…"

"Personally speaking, I feel he lack the reliability. I simply don't trust this guy. And later I have to make a decision whether he should be in the council or not. All the members seem to be in favor of him…if they all voted a yes then I'll have no reason to refuse."

"Maybe you should give him a chance, Gaara-kun. He got talent and about the trustworthy or not stuff…we'll see about that. Ah, tell me about your dream then. I'm dying to hear!"

Remembered what he had promised earlier, Gaara told Hii about the Akatsuki's dream he had lately, which still bothered him up till now. He explained to her the uneasy feelings he had was just the same as a year ago, before the Akatsuki attacked Suna. Hii looked at Gaara in concern, understanding what he was saying. In fact, she knew that feelings too because she had also experienced it the moment Gaara was taken away. Hii was in Konoha with Temari during that time and she had to leave everything to run ceaselessly back to Suna but she didn't return in time…Thinking about that incident really gave her a chill. Besides, Hii never doubt Gaara's instinct, he was incredibly correct when sensing something unfortunate was coming up. Wrapping Gaara's waist in her arms, Hii tried to comfort him by assuring nothing would happen and if there were something, she would be there with Gaara to solve it. Gaara put his arm around Hii's shoulder and grinned at her. Hii was like his special medicine; every moment he spent with her, his stress was reduced to the scale of zero. Her presence was a miracle…

"Kazekage-sama, the meeting is ready." – A man said.

"Good."

Gaara replied and let go of Hii. Honestly, Hii wanted Gaara to stay for a little while…just a little more. She quietly looked at him from behind; wind was blowing through his red hair, beautifully. When the man disappeared behind the door, Gaara abruptly turned back and gave Hii a light kiss on her lips, which made her flushed quite a bit. Then he broke off to look at her. Hii felt his fingers were stroking her cheek before he turned round and walked through the glass door.

Matsuri was staring at Johou who was eating her homemade cookies in such a passionate manner. Somehow seeing him like this make her feel much better. Johou had a gift to entertain people although some of his jokes were considered to be lame. Matsuri found it funny since people rumored that he might have a crush on her. It didn't surprise her though. Johou was her captain in most of the missions so…misunderstanding could happen.

"I don't think you come here only to eat half of my cookies jar..." Matsuri said, throwing him a conspicuous look.

"You're sharp! I saw you crying on the street so I followed you home. It's weird to see the energetic Matsuri acts like a heart-broken lady." – Johou responded.

"I didn't have a good day senpai."

"It hasn't been a day yet, Matsuri-san. Kazekage-sama must have disappointed you, having a girlfriend like that…"

Matsuri shuddered. The would be no way Johou knew how she felt. No chance at all!

"I'm just kidding Matsuri-san. Talking about the Kazekage, it seems like he doesn't like me much either. I know I'm a handsome and talented man and all but he can't kick me out of the council for that."

Matsuri threw him another are-you- a-weirdo look before Johou stood up, fixing his glasses.

"Nah you absolutely have no sense of humor today. I'm leaving…By the way, kohai…"

Johou kneeled down in front of Matsuri, smiling at her innocently.

"In case you want "something" so badly and it's not yours, you can always take it…By force, through deception…It's not the end of everything. Think about it, Matsuri-san. I hope to see your cheerful smile again."

Sitting alone in her house, Matsuri found herself confused. What Johou said had strike her strongly, made her think about the situation. That "something", it could be Gaara…in fact Gaara was the only one she desire. She wanted to be with him, to possess his love. She had been working hard for that, she couldn't just give up now.

Matsuri had decided.

"I won't lose."


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8: First crack

_I'm ready…_

Hii comforted herself that she would beat Gaara today. The battle she had been preparing for finally came. There was still no sign of Gaara, how troublesome. He wouldn't plan an ambush on her, would he? Hii felt the thrill running in her blood, excited her. Fighting against Gaara was a good chance to measure how much more powerful she had become. Also, she desired to show Gaara her how strong she was, therefore made him proud. The atmosphere was so quiet… All of a sudden, Hii looked to her right with a smile…

Gaara was observing her with his Third eye. He had to admit that when it comes to battle, Hii had transformed into a different person. With those sharp eyes, that confident smirk…she could strike a mental attack on the weak-minded opponents. Gaara felt he shouldn't be stalking her any longer. The moment he saw her smile, Gaara knew Hii had revealed his jutsu. Teleporting in front of Hii, Gaara fold his arm and tried to make his face look as much serious as possible. Hii gave him a challenging look while reaching for the body-length katana on her back.

"Rushing won't do you any good, Hii. You're in my territory now." – Gaara said.

Hii quickly recognize the sand was sneaking under her feet with an attempt to bind her to the ground. Without hesitation, she then infused the sword with her chakra, making it become a deadly electric blade, and dashed to where Gaara stood. As she ran, Hii could feel the sand was chasing her madly behind her back. She had to use her katana to cut through countless sand walls that Gaara created in front of her. She was so close to him…

First strike, the blade encountered Gaara's sand defense. Realizing Hii would push the sword deeper into his shield, Gaara had no choice but to thicken the sand layer on it. The sand storm he created behind Hii seemed to be useless because she also wielded a shield to protect herself as well. Gaara was so familiar with this kind of shielding jutsu. It was the Air-based shield type 1, which would prevent everything from physically attacking the user. Unless Hii hadn't learnt her lesson…

"Hope you remember…" – Gaara whispered.

"Huh?" – Hii startled

Gaara knew the only weakness of her shield come from the below. The sand Hii was standing on was the weapon Gaara would use against her because it was already inside her barrier. While Hii was off guard, he then commanded the sand to crawl up her body, forming a sand coffin. Gaara noticed Hii throwing a kunai at him but automatically his sand knocked it away.

_What was she thinking? Throwing that thing at me like that._

The sand had covered Hii's entire body. If it was real battle, she would be dead…

"CHIDORI!"

Gaara widened his eyes in astonishment when he heard the sound of the familiar chidori. He turned his head around and only had a few seconds to dodge Hii's fatal attack. Gaara vanished under the ground and reappeared in a safe distance. His sand coffin slowly collapsed, revealing the exact kunai Hii threw at him before. No doubt Hii had performed a replacement justu, which was a clever move. Gaara looked at the lightning sphere in Hii's hand and realized she was using a white chidori rather than the original blue one. That form, no wonder it crushed his sand barrier completely…

"You actually tried to kill me with that advanced chidori? Now, you're something Hii."

"Nope, Gaara-kun. I just want to show you what I'm capable of." – Hii replied with a grin.

Holding the chidori in her hand, Hii tried to strike another attack. Dodging all the sand coming at her, Hii direct her lightning fist at Gaara but this time she was the one who got surprise. Her chidori had been stopped by the perfect Shukaku shield from him, giving her no choice but to draw back.

"Eh, what is this?" – Hii asked, raising her eyebrow.

"Told you there would be surprises. Losing Shukaku doesn't mean losing my jutsu…SAND TSUNAMI!"

"ELECTRIC SHIELD!"

A strong electrical barrier had surrounded Hii, protecting her from being buried under the sand. However, Hii couldn't stand in one place for long since the sand continuously attacked her from the above and below. Hii started to run around the area, avoiding the sand while shooting back lightning shuriken at Gaara. The sand really annoyed her. Also, the fact that Gaara still kept his Shukaku jutsu even made it harder for her to win. Realized fighting on the ground would do her no good, Hii decided to take the fight into the next level. Focusing her chakra on the back, she created a beautiful pair of electrical wings which could act as both her defense and offense. Hii smiled victoriously…

Gaara looked at Hii flying in the air and sighed. It seemed like his sand was useless for now since her barrier had formed a complete sphere around her body. Nothing could get in, even a tiny grain of sand…And if he touched her wings, he knew would be done for. Gaara knew he need a plan fast because Hii had better stamina than him, in the long run she would have the advantage. If only she couldn't perform the hand seals…Gaara then rode on his sand and came to Hii's place. A closed range attack would worth trying.

"RAITON: ELECTRIC NEEDLES!"

Thousand needles were coming at Gaara, making him stop in midway. Gaara realized they had already pinned on his sand defense. If he calculated right, Hii's next move would be…

"I'll end it here, Gaara-kun. SUITON: WATER DRAGON!"

A huge water dragon was approaching Gaara, dampened all his sand and knocked him down. Her combination of water and lightning was what Gaara found most lethal among her other techniques. Not only could it deal with his sand but it could also paralyze his muscles. Hii watched Gaara falling to the ground and quickly dove to his side. Gaara couldn't move an inch…Hii's fist was right in front of his nose…

"You lose, Gaara-kun! Say it!" – Hii said happily.

Suddenly, Hii rolled forward to avoid a powerful kick above her head. Looking over her shoulder, Hii saw Gaara was standing with his arms folded as usual. The Gaara lying on the ground had disappeared…could it be a sand clone? It couldn't be, that "Gaara" was so real…Hii had no time to think since Gaara was attacking her with sand blades together with taijutsu. Now that was new. Hii didn't expect his taijutsu to be this exceptional. In fact, Hii didn't think Gaara could actually use any taijutsu at all…His moves were fast and strong. It would be very irritating if Gaara could beat her in the field she was good at. Focusing all the strength on her hands, she promptly grabbed his wrists, blocking his moves. But then…

Gaara's arms started to melt. Hii looked at the sand covering her hands in horror. It had entirely locked her hands and pulled her to the ground. Her fingers were being squeezed tightly which made it impossible for her to focus the chakra, let alone performing jutsu. Hii struggled to free her hands but it was all useless. She couldn't afford to lose like this. The more she struggled, the tighter the sand squeezed her. However, Hii froze when she felt something sharp was touching her back. Turning her head around, she saw Gaara was pointing at her with the katana she dropped at the beginning.

"You know Hii, if you were my enemy this blade would go through your heart." – Gaara said calmly.

"But…how?" – Hii asked.

"The one who was hit by your dragon was the real me. However I was smart enough to hide myself under the sand and let you deal with my sand clone instead. That was no ordinary sand clone, that thing could do whatever I could. You can say it's the second me…"

"I see."

"My aim was to get you hold that clone with your bare hands so that I could lock them up. A ninja with no hand seal couldn't do much, right?"

Hii chose not to answer Gaara. Her silence somehow concerned him. Gaara suddenly felt uneasy, he didn't know if it was a sign that Hii was mad at losing or not. Either way, he knew he'd better find a way to comfort her later. Releasing Hii's hands from the sand, Gaara offered a hand to help her get up but Hii just simply ignored it and stood up on her own. Gaara looked at Hii who was rubbing her wrist and wondered if he had been too harsh on her. He took a few steps closer, intending to embrace her…

"Give me my sword." – Hii said without looking at Gaara.

Gaara immediately handed the katana to Hii. She was mad at him, no doubt she was. Sometimes Gaara wished Hii didn't have such a strong and aggressive personality in battle even though he found her anger right now was quite weird. They had fought with each other before, Gaara won most of the time but Hii had never been this sulky. Gaara saw Hii pinned her sword to the ground again, having no idea what she was up to. She was smiling at him, what a mysterious smile.

"Sorry, Gaara-kun."

Hii jumped away from Gaara then quickly performed a hand seal. Gaara felt he was trap in a giant glass cage. He couldn't control his sand. His jutsu was nullified. Air based shield type 2 sure lived up to its reputation. It assured the enemy inside was completely powerless.

"I didn't know you could go back on your promise that easy, Hii." – Gaara said

"I haven't admitted defeat yet Gaara-kun. Remember?" – Hii replied.

Gaara smirked. This girl was more cunning than he thought. Keeping silence not only helped her not to break the rule but also made Gaara become careless. Hii had put on quite a show just then…Well the game was still on, since none of them agreed to say "I give up". Although Gaara knew he had no way to escape, he refused to say so even if Hii meant to kill him, which she wouldn't. However Gaara felt something wasn't right. His limbs were becoming numb gradually. He lost control over his body little by little, even his mind started to lose its consciousness. To his horror, Gaara found himself being tied up by electrical chakra thread coming from all over the place.

_That sword over there, it must the chakra source…_

Gaara tried to reach to Hii's blade but it was too far away. There was no way to knock it down. Gaara saw Hii performing another hand seal. That technique, Gaara couldn't believe Hii would…

"Sealing technique…HII, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" – Gaara yelled.

"It's for your own good, Gaara-kun." – Hii replied.

Staring at Hii's feet, Gaara's eyes widened when he saw the jar that contained the Shukaku's chakra emerging from the ground. Hii had set up everything. This must be her back-up plan in case she didn't success in defeating him. Gaara wrestled with the threads in vain since they were holding him so tightly. He stopped moving his muscles…It was no use…Gaara faced up to the sky and started questioning himself. Maybe he didn't need to be that prejudiced toward the chakra. It was the chakra, not the Ichibi, not the monster. After all, he did need to become stronger, for the sake of this village…

_It's the monster, get away from him…He couldn't control the Shukaku, he will kill us all…Please don't kill me…Gaara, please die…Die, Gaara, just die…_

Gaara's eyes shut tight.

_I don't believe it, he got the Shukaku's chakra…Will the Kazekage become a monster again?...Who knows if it wasn't the Shukaku or not. Who knows…Who can guarantee that it's only the monster's chakra…_

His teeth were grinding.

_Those eyes…they are looking at me like that again…_

_I don't want to be hated…_

_Don't hate me…_

_Hii…please stop it. Stop it…_

"STOP IT!" – Gaara screamed.

Immediately Hii canceled her jutsu. She looked at Gaara who was breathing heavily, tears were in her eyes. He had never been this angry with her before. However, his angry voice wasn't what made her feel hurt. It was his eyes. The same old eyes filled with sorrow, sadness and hatred. The same eyes he had when they first met each other. Hii used to save him from them but now, he was looking at her with those eyes again. The frustrated murderous look in Gaara's eyes had strike her with regret. Gaara must have hated her by now.

"Hii, wait. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to yell at you like that…Hii…" – Gaara said hastily.

Hii looked up to Gaara's face then stared at her hands again. She didn't have the courage to face him, after what she had done. Gaara hurriedly walked towards Hii, his hand reached out for her but she stood back. Gaara looked at Hii's reaction and felt hurt himself. Gaara felt he was to blame for being over-irritated, if only he could control his emotion better…As for Hii, she pretty much want to say how regretful she was, that she deserved to be punished for hurting Gaara. She didn't expect her decision could bring back a serious consequence like this. Hii wanted to say she was sorry but she couldn't, it was like someone was choking her throat. Tears were filling her eyes but she couldn't let them out. Taking a deep breath, Hii picked up the chakra's jar and handed it over to Gaara.

"It's my fault Gaara-kun. I shouldn't have forced you to do something that you hate. I was so selfish, I didn't care about how you feel. I was an idiot…"

"Hii, you're not an idiot. I was wrong, I shouldn't…"

Hii placed a finger on Gaara's lips, making him stop halfway.

"Listen to me Gaara-kun. I love you and I never want to see you get hurt. What I did today was unforgivable. I made a terrible mistake, you can be mad at me and I don't mind. Here this thing…I will give it to you. You will decide what to do with this chakra."

Gaara quickly grabbed Hii's hand and pressed it against his cheek. Hii's eyes were so sad. Could it be that he had upset her badly?

"Are you mad at me, Hii?" – Gaara asked sincerely.

"No, not at all." – Hii said and took her hand away.

"Just tell me and I will do anything to make it up to you…"

Hii gently shook her head. She was the one who should make amend for her mistake, not Gaara. His eyes had come back to normal now, everything was normal except for the concern in his look.

"Kazekage-sama, it's an emergency. The council is calling for a meeting right now!" – said a jounin appeared from nowhere.

"I will come in a moment. Tell them to wait…"

"But Kazekage-sama, it's urgent…"

Realizing Gaara was needed for an important meeting, Hii picked up her katana then ran out of the training area. She heard Gaara calling her name from behind, his voice was so warm and caring…Hii halted and turned around, waving at Gaara. She shouldn't make him worry about her. Hii really didn't want Gaara to be distracted from work because of that. Then Hii disappeared…

"Kazekage-sama?"

Gaara nodded at the jounin and followed him to the meeting room.


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter 9: Kazekanshi

All the high-ranked members had arrived with a serious look on their face. Gaara calmly took a seat while observing the situation. Would it have anything to do with the Akatsuki again? Or another war declaration? Gaara couldn't predict what was going on. Everyone was so tense, well except for Johou. That annoying innocent smile on his face again…it really irritated Gaara. However, Gaara had decided to put on an emotionless front as usual and started the meeting.

"Kazekage-sama, this is a letter from the Raikage of the Hidden Cloud." – Baki said, giving him the letter.

Gaara found it quite surprising to receive a letter from the Raikage. Since the two villages had just formed an alliance, it must be something important for the Raikage to write the letter himself.

_Honorable Fifth Kazekage,_

_As the Raikage of the Hidden Cloud village in the Land of Lightning, I once again express my great pleasure upon becoming alliance with the Hidden Sand. Since we have become comrades now, I do have a favor to ask from you, the Kazekage. _

_I have acknowledged that my granddaughter- princess Imai Nori of the hidden clan Imai is now staying at your village. However, since Nori is now my flesh and blood, I would like to appoint her to be my successor, the next Raikage. In order to reach that goal, Nori will need to stay in her home village and fulfill her duties as a Hidden Cloud's ninja. She will also need to be trained by me and other jounins from our village. Let me emphasize this: Nori doesn't have much time to waste. _

_So I hope you will know what is best for her and return the princess to where she should be. I'm asking you not only as a Kage but also as a grandfather. You will have a month. I hope you won't be regretful of your decision._

_Sincerely, _

_Forth Raikage – A_

"It's not going to happen." – Gaara said and threw the letter on the table.

The room was in complete silence, everyone seemed to be startled by his quick but determined respond…

"Hii isn't going anywhere. I won't let the Raikage takes her away like that." – Gaara continued.

"I absolutely agree with Kazekage-sama." – an authority said –"Right now we need her barrier to protect Suna…"

"Isn't that her barrier still exists even if she stays outside the village?" – Johou asked.

"Yes. But the further she is from the Land of Wind, the weaker her barrier will become." – Gaara replied coldly.

"And we need the barrier to be at its best state…"

The discussion still went on but Gaara had another concern in his mind. No way would he let his girlfriend be taken away that easily. Without Hii, Gaara didn't know if he could find any happiness in his life. He didn't want to be apart from his love any more. He wouldn't let her go, never ever let her go… But also Gaara was afraid that Hii might listen to her grandfather and left him. She was mad at him this morning, what if she took this chance and ran away…

"We need her, end of discussion." – an elder decided – "Her strength and her barrier are essential to our village. Her presence will benefit Suna greatly. Kazekage-sama, you mustn't let her go!"

"Are all of you…blind?" – Johou asked with a smile.

The room had become silent again. Everyone was looking at Johou , Gaara narrowed his eyes…

"If you want this village to cross sword with the Hidden Cloud then go on, keep the princess as you please. Why do you think the Raikage gives us 1 month? 1 month is the exact time a ninja can stay in a foreign village and after this amount time, the home village of that ninja has the right to take him back. If we refuse, we break the rule. War will break out" – Johou said.

"But she has stayed here for 3 years…" – an authority said.

"That's because she registered as a Hidden Leaf's ninja before. Konoha gave her permission to come to Suna to help our Kazekage. But now she belongs to the Hidden Cloud, Raikage has the right to call her back…Ok supposing that her shield could protect us from being attacked but can we bear the sarcasm others will throw at us? That our ninjas are so weak that we have to kidnap another ninja from Hidden Cloud village? In this case, Imai Nori – precious granddaughter of the Raikage?"

Gaara sat back and deliberated Johou's respond. He had to admit johou had a point there. In the worst scenario, war would take place. Even though Gaara didn't care about reputation or whatever, he couldn't let other villages look down on Suna. The consequence might be immeasurable. Gaara wasn't sure if the enemy villages would take advantage of this incident and tried to isolate Suna from others. If this case happened, its existence would be threatened. However, letting Hii go wasn't an option either. Gaara was stuck between the choices. If only Hii was a Suna's ninja…

"Kazekage-sama, I hope you won't keep her because of the love affair you two have. Think of the village first." – Johou said, half-smiling at Gaara.

"How dare you…" – Gaara replied irritably.

" O ho ho ho. Now everything is much simpler." –an elder laughed.

Both Gaara and Johou were looking at him in surprise. If he could laugh at a time like this, he must have thought of something good enough. Personally, Gaara hoped that old man could have some ideas to deal with this problem. He silently prayed…

"May I ask how old Hii-chan is, Kazekage-dono?"

"The same age as mine, 16." – Gaara said.

"Perfect, just perfect! Kazekage-dono, I think it's time we should have a Kazekanshi."

* * *

><p>"A-choo…"<p>

"It seemed like someone is continuously talking about you since you're sneezing like crazy, Hii-chan." – Temari giggled.

Hii smiled back at Temari and looked at the sea again. They were on a mission to guard the Land of Wind's south costal area. Recently there were disturbing pirates coming to shore and violently interfered with people living here. By this morning, they had already dealt with a gang of 20 bloody pirates and ambushed a pirate ship, arresting all of its crew before they could do any harm to those living on land. Temari found Hii's wings were extremely useful in air combat and complimented her on having such a handy technique. They continued walking around the shore and Hii actually took time to show Temari how to do the lightning wings jutsu. However, Temari wasn't a lightning release at nature so performing that jutsu was somehow impossible for her.

1 hour…2 hours…3 hours…

Hii noticed that it was getting dark little by little. At the moment, she was examining an old book she got from the ship, a beautiful old book with golden cover. Guess it was a book for children since it was full of mythological stories. Thanks god she found this book, at least it kept her entertained.

"Nee-chan, what is a Kazekanshi? Is it a kind of poetry or something" – Hii asked, waving the book in front of Temari.

"Eh… Don't tell me you never heard of that title?" – Temari replied in disbelief.

Hii shook her head.

"Well Kazekanshi means "wind's observation". The "Kanshi" thing is applied to the wife or husband of a Kage..."

Then Temari went on explaining more about this interesting title. After all the" this and that and that and again this and that", Hii could finally understand what exactly a "Kanshi" was. To sum up, there were 4 conditions for one to carry the tittle "Kanshi". First, the Kanshi must be chosen by the Kage and later be approved by the council. Second, he or she must be an elite ninja. Third, a Kanshi must be on good term with the villagers and accepted by them. Finally, the age for a person to be nominated as a Kanshi was at least 16 for female and 18 for male. As for the responsibilities and duties, they were countless. They had to be the ambassador, attended meetings, took care of the village and other tons of no-name responsibilities. But the most important of all, a Kanshi must do anything in his or her power to protect the Kage.

"But if a Kanshi's role is that important, how come there wasn't any Kanshi before?"

"Because…all the Kanshis…had DIED a TRAGIC DEATH!"

Kankuro's creepy voice truly scared the hell out of Hii and Temari. Without warning, Temari turned towards Kankuro and violently bashed him on the head. It must have been hurt since Hii saw him rolling on the ground, moaning…

"Damn Temari…What was that for? I was only telling the truth!" – Kankuro said and crawled back up.

"You don't need to scare us like that! It's spooky out here already." – Temari snapped back.

"Hey Hii-chan, mark my words, the Kanshi title is ominous. There were only 4 Kanshis in the history of this world: First and second Hoshikanshi, first Getsukanshi and well, first Iwakanshi. They were all murdered at a very young age and died in such painful ways…" – Kankuro said worriedly.

"Don't be that naïve Kankuro! You seriously believe what people have been gossiping about the Kanshis?" – said Temari.

"I just want to tease Hii-chan a little bit. Who knows if Gaara may want her to be his Kazekanshi or what."

"Nahhh…listen Hii-chan, don't believe Kankuro. The reason why our village didn't have any Kazekanshi before is because no ninja could math up to all 4 conditions. Besides, the Kanshi can take over power in case the Kage is absent. It's kind of a double-edged sword so choosing a Kanshi may not be a wise choice to some villages where too many parties exist…"

"Don't worry about that…" – Hii sighed –"…it's not like Gaara will ask me to marry him or anything. I made him get mad this morning."

"Then he must be very mad since he didn't mention your name the whole time we were together, I mean, training."

Matsuri suddenly appeared behind Kankuro, waving at everyone. Kankuro then explained that they came to change shift with Hii and Temari, and that luckily when he thought he had to go alone, Matsuri voluntarily came and offered to help. Matsuri looked at Hii for a while then came near her, putting one arm over her shoulders. Hii found it kind of creepy since Matsuri had never been this friendly to her before.

"What did you do that make Gaara-sensei be angry?" – Matsuri asked.

"I…uhm…I disobeyed him…" – Hii replied.

"What? Disobeyed? Gaara asked for…_it_ already?" – Kankuro asked with his eyes wide-opened in excitement.

"KANKUROOOO…"

A powerful bash was thrown on Kankuro's head right after Temari's roar. It seemed like Kankuro had got on Temari's nerve with his "innocence". Hii giggled when she saw Temari was holding one of Kankuro's ears and threatened to blow him to the sea with her iron fan while Kankuro was yelling he didn't think of anything _that_ bad. Looking to her side, Hii noticed Matsuri was observing her with a pair of curious eyes.

"No, no, it's not like what Kankuro said, Matsuri-san." – Hii smiled.

"I just want to say that… I'd be very careful if I were you, Hii-chan. Small cracks in relationship can create bigger ones. There's no guarantee that things will go smoothly till the end…" – Matsuri said in a soft voice.

* * *

><p>Hii was wandering on the windy street of Suna. The mission had ended long ago but Hii didn't feel like coming home. She didn't want to see Gaara either. Matsuri's words somehow bothered Hii. Although judging from his reaction this morning, Hii felt Gaara didn't show much anger towards her but she didn't know if he was trying to conceal it or not. Hii felt she didn't deserve to face Gaara again. How could she face him when she couldn't understand him? Maybe Bee-sama was right, no one knew what was best for a person but that person himself. Whatever, Hii couldn't think clearly anymore…<p>

Anyway, Hii knew she owned Gaara a proper apology!

Hii dashed to the main building with the hope to meet Gaara again. But when she arrived, Hii saw no light from Gaara's office window. It was late. Gaara must have gone to bed already and the last thing she would do was to disturb his sleep. Hii silently turned away in disappointment and walked home. Maybe tomorrow…

Temari greeted Hii with a concern look on her face. She told Hii how much she was worried when she didn't see her at home. Smiling at Temari gently, Hii assured her that nothing bad happened then excused herself. The feeling of tiredness and sadness mixing together was such a pain. Hii needed a rest to clear her mind. She closed the door behind her back and turned on the light.

"Where have you been?" – Gaara said seriously.

Hii couldn't believe her eyes. It was incredible, Gaara was here! Hii's heart suddenly beat faster when she saw his face. Gaara was sitting with his back against the wall, looking at Hii intensely. His eyes seemed like they were questioning Hii, but still, concerning a great deal about her.

"You're supposed to be home hours ago. What's wrong? Did Kankuro come late?" – Gaara continued.

"Wait, you sent him?"

"Who else could get his lazy ass up for extra mission? Anyway, you didn't even stop by my office, Hii. Are you…still mad at me?"

Before Gaara could realize it, Hii threw herself in his arms, hugging him tightly. She rested her cheek against his chest and closed her eyes. Gaara didn't know what was happening to Hii but he quickly put his arms around her, gently stroking her hair.

"Gaara-kun, I'm not mad at you. It's just that…never mind. Anyway, what I did this morning was wrong. I honestly apologize for that. Please forgive me!" – Hii said, putting her hands together in such a remorseful manner.

"But you didn't do anything wrong."

"I insist, Gaara-kun."

Gaara smirked at Hii although he didn't quite understand what she was babbling about. At least Hii had acted normally again, which was a relief to Gaara. He held her close to his chest again while reaching for the Raikage's letter.

"Well, I want you to read this first, Hii. Read it and tell me what you think." – Gaara whispered in Hii's ear.

This time Gaara decided to let Hii make up her mind on her own. He shouldn't interfere with her family's issues. If she wished to go, Gaara had no choice but to respect her decision. He would do whatever he could to keep her by his side but if Hii truly wanted to leave then Gaara couldn't stop her…though it would be very hurtful.

"You can write him back a letter like this, Gaara-kun: that your granddaughter don't give a damn 'bout comin' back since she has vowed to stay with the man she loves forever. Ha ha, that's how we speak at home." – Hii laughed.

"That's fine with you but I will need to write in a more formal language." –Gaara said, kissing Hii's forehead – "Besides, I haven't said I forgave you yet, Hii."

"What?"

"Saying "sorry" alone isn't enough. You should prove it, too."

Gaara said and put his arms behind his head, looking elsewhere. Teasing Hii was always entertaining Gaara, he shouldn't let this valuable chance slip away.

"But how?" – Hii asked, shaking his arm.

"You should know yourself." – Gaara responded, still looking away.

"Okay, tell me Gaara-kun. I will do whatever you ask for."

"Anything?"

Hii nodded.

"Then ask me to stay here." – Gaara said slyly.

Hii was taken aback by Gaara's abnormal request. She'd never thought Gaara would go this far…

"Hurry up, I want to hear you say it. Just say "stay here with me", it's easy…"

Hii faced was turning red…

"If you don't, I'll leave and never forget what you did today." – Gaara said and made a frowning face.

"Please stay here with me" – Hii blurted.

"Say it in a more emotional way!" – Gaara demanded.

"Gaara-kun, please stay here with me…"

"Not enough."

Hii gasped and gave Gaara a wheedling look. Gaara remained indifferent and looked back at her. Hii felt her face was heated because of what she was about to say. She sat beside Gaara, putting her arms around his waist.

"Darling…will you stay here with me tonight? I mean it…" – Hii said softly.

Gaara grinned and kissed Hii on the lips. This kiss was way more passionate than everything they have experienced before. Gaara was kissing Hii fiercely, he simply couldn't stop. Hii was like his estacy, making him desire for more. Also, it was undeniable that she was such a good kisser. Hii broke off to breathe but Gaara didn't let her free for long. He kissed her again. Hii couldn't fight back the amorousness in Gaara's kiss, the affection in the way his hands was caressing her. Hii succumb to the passion Gaara brought about. She embraced him tighter. Gaara slowly pushed Hii down to the floor. Hii realized Gaara was lying on top of her, his body glued entirely to hers. There was no way Hii could escape now. For a moment, Hii could even taste the tip of his tongue…Gaara's hand ripped away the bandages covering Hii's waist to caress her bare flesh. His lips sensuously move from her cheek to her earlobe. His hand leisurely moved up and down. Hii closed her eyes again, stroking Gaara's neck. She just loved the way they were making out right now...

"Don't stop, Gaara-kun…" – Hii mumbled.

CRACK! SHCHING!

The sound of breaking glass startled Hii and Gaara making them stop half way. It turned out that Gaara's feet had knocked one of Hii's vases over, breaking it. Hii giggled at Gaara's astounding facial expression.

"Seriously, why are you putting them there, Hii?" – Gaara grumbled.

"Hii-chan is everything alright? I'm coming in."

It was Temari voice echoed from afar. Hii saw Gaara shaking his head like crazy.

"No, it's nothing Temari-neechan. I'm going to sleep now. Good-night!" – Hii quickly replied.

"Ok, good night!"

"She didn't know I'm here." – Gaara explained.

At this moment, Hii had to admit that Gaara was a sneaky master. They looked at each other again and laughed. It would be embarrassing if Temari caught them in action. Hii stood up and went to the bathroom to change her sleeping clothes. When she got out, Gaara were putting his jacket and his crimson red long coat on the chair. He was wearing the black t-shirt which Hii _stole_ from him a year ago because she felt it was quite comfortable to sleep in. So he found it already…

"Here, I got the sleeping place ready." – Gaara said, pointing at the tatami.

"Thanks, Gaara-kun.' – Hii said and lied down – "Oh, I got a spare tatami, too. I will get it for you."

"No need to." –Gaara replied and lied down next to her.

Hii blushed and turned her back at Gaara. This reminded her of the first time they slept together like this, when they were 12. It was because Shukaku was giving Gaara a hard time sleeping so Hii had to guard him every night. The feelings at that time were so different from the feelings right now. Maybe because they had all grown up now…Gaara suddenly hugged Hii from the behind. His breath peacefully blew on her neck…

"Hii...if I asked you to marry me, would you accept?" – Gaara mumbled.

No respond.

"Hii?"

Gaara looked over to Hii's face and realized she had fallen asleep. It must have been a hard day for her. Gaara then used his sand to turn off the light. And slowly, he was drifted to a deep sleep.


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter 10: Danger approaching

Suna's summer days were lazily passing by…

Gaara was aware of how much time he had wasted. A month, he only had a month to talk Hii into becoming the Kazekanshi and time was almost running out. Until now, he still hadn't found a proper time to bring this topic up to her again.

"What are you waiting for, Gaara? You two love each other!" – Baki said impatiently.

"I know but this is not a joke. I can't just jump in front of her saying that she has to be my wife. No way will she accept such a thing…" – Gaara replied with a groan.

"But if you don't act fast you'll lose her. Raikage is in such a bad mood these days…Unless you don't love Hii enough to ask her so."

"You know that's NOT the reason. I'm ready…the thing is I need more time to persuade her."

Gaara leaned against his chair and sighed. He knew that they were both serious about this relationship but marriage at a time like this seemed to be too early for Hii. Hii loved him, but she wasn't prepared for family life yet and Gaara didn't want to force her either. They both needed time-the only thing that Raikage didn't give them. It seemed to Gaara that Hii's latest letter had got on the Raikage's nerves since he announced that he would disown her if she didn't come back on the double. What was worse, the Raikage even requested Gaara to tear apart the guy who "my idiotic granddaughter is in love with".

_I wonder how he'd react if he knew that guy was me… _

Gaara smiled discreetly.

"Gaara-senseiiiii…Good mor-ning…" – Matsuri said cheerfully.

"How many times do I have to tell you to KNOCK before coming in?" – Gaara asked, being annoyed.

Baki bowed and walked out of the room.

Recently, Matsuri had been acting very strangely. She always detained Gaara from returning after class, trying to come up with all excuses to keep him staying longer. Last time, Gaara was late for a date with Hii since he had to show Matsuri the theory of some techniques that she wanted to know. She followed him almost everywhere, which was bothersome. Another thing…Gaara couldn't stand those flirtatious eyes that Matsuri directed at him. Somehow, they were just unpleasant.

"I thought I had sent you to train with Hii this morning." – Gaara spoke.

"But I prefer you teaching me." – Matsuri replied with a wink.

Gaara looked at Matsuri's eager face and turned towards the window. She was still babbling about something but Gaara didn't pay attention anymore. The sky was so clear...what a nice weather. The atmosphere was perfect for…proposing? Perhaps?

"Matsuri, are you free?" – Gaara asked abruptly.

"Yessss sensei! Do you want to go somewhere?" – Matsuri replied hopefully.

"Go fetch Hii for me. Tell her I have something important to discuss."

Matsuri sulked when she heard Gaara's order. Hii, Hii and Hii again. Couldn't they live without each other for a minute? Matsuri bowed and stomped out of the room. Her head was filled with discomfort. Matsuri pretty much wanted to throw all of her anger on Hii though she understood that she was the one who was being unreasonable here. Jealousy was so hard to control…

Matsuri was walking, walking…

Being deep in thought, Matsuri didn't care much about where she was going until she bumped into Hii on the street. Matsuri quickly faked a happy smile at her…Suddenly she had an idea.

"Hey Matsuri-san, you didn't come training this morning. Did anything happen?"

"Nothing much, just some business with Gaara-sensei. I stayed with him the whole time, hope you don't mind." – Matsuri said coolly.

"Oh really. What was it? Can I help?"

"I'm afraid not, it's confidential, Hii-chan. Besides, Gaara-sensei only trusts me to do it…Isn't it weird Hii-chan? I thought sensei would tell you first, you're his girlfriend after all. How come he doesn't trust you enough…"

Hii was shocked by what Matsuri had just told her. It was unbelievable because Gaara had something that he was hiding. Hii couldn't help thinking about what she had been doing wrong that made Gaara refuse to share his concern with her, but there was nothing. They didn't have any fight recently…An idea suddenly popped out in her head. It couldn't be the marriage issue he was talking about, could it? Hii only thought Gaara was joking. But, honestly it didn't have anything to do with Matsuri. Could it be that Gaara asked Matsuri for advice?

"Did Gaara-kun say anything about marriage or something? – Hii asked.

Marriage – that word worried Matsuri quite a bit.

"Not, not at all. Actually, our business had nothing to do with you, Hii-chan."

Hii felt she was petrified.

_Their business?_

"Don't you think Gaara-sensei is sweeter than before? He's been complimenting my eyes lately. He said they're so shiny…like stars in the night sky."

_Shiny eyes? _

"He even said I brought comfort to those around. He said he loved it."

_Love…her comfort? What the hell is going on, Gaara?_

Somehow, Hii felt very irritated. She once told Gaara she wouldn't mind if he complimented other women but this was getting out of hand. Seriously, Hii thought Gaara could at least save the "shiny eyes" for her, HER only. Hii tried to calm down and reasoned with herself. One or two harmless compliments couldn't do much.

"It seems like Gaara-sensei enjoys talking with me a great deal. He always asks me to stay after class for a while, just to have a couple of small talks…"

Hii widened her eyes, hoping she didn't mishear anything. Hii was sure that Gaara said the opposite thing when he was late for their date. Hii didn't think Matsuri was lying since there would be no reason for her to do so. Hii trusted Gaara as well but at the moment she was confused. It was so annoying, Hii just wanted to go to Gaara's place to ask him right away.

Wait…Hii realized she was only being jealous.

Hii giggled at the feeling she never had before. Funny enough, love could be bitter sometimes.

However, something was approaching…

Hii felt it, clearly. The disturbance became greater and greater. Hii closed her eyes and let her sense go freely. The back gate, the barrier was under attack!

Hii dashed to the direction where she sensed the disturbance on the shield was. Matsuri was running after her in anxiety. Hii had no time to stop. Noting could break through the shield but in order to make such a strong disturbance to the barrier like this, the enemy was no ordinary human. Finally, Hii arrived at the scene and to her horror, she saw…

Johou was lying in a pool of blood, badly injured. The villagers around was extremely panic when they saw Hii rushed to Johou's side and started treating his wounds. Luckily the cuts weren't very deep but it was enough to make him bleed like crazy. Hii looked over to Matsuri who was crying and told her to get the medic squad as soon as possible.

"The other two…they were killed…" Johou said under his breath.

"Don't say anything, Johou-san. Save your strength." – Hii said while trying to heal a cut on his wrist.

"Who did this, Johou?" – Gaara asked, looking concern.

The sand siblings had also arrived. Hii looked up to Gaara and gave him a sign to keep silence. Gaara nodded then ordered Temari and Kankurou to check the area outside while he kneeled down beside Hii to examine Johou's wounds. Luckily, Johou's critic condition was gone but he would need a long time to rest. Gaara looked to his left and caught Hii's eyes… She looked extremely worried…

"There's no sign of the enemy." –Temari and Kankurou said at once.

"They can't go very far…" – Hii said.

"They?" – Temari asked doubtfully.

"Yes, a single person can't have that much strength to disturb my barrier like that!"

"What about the Jinjurikis?" – Gaara asked.

"However the force was much weaker comparing to a Jinjuriki. According to my calculation, this could be caused by a gang of at least 6 people."

All of a sudden, Johou let out a small groan. He was trying to tell them something. Hii's look followed his hand pointing to an envelope pitched to the sandy ground. Judging from the symbol on it, the letter must be from her home village, the Hidden Cloud. Without hesitation, Hii came to pick the envelope up with Gaara close to her back. It was kind of heavy. Gaara was observing her without blinking his eyes.

Her name was on it.

Hii slowly tore the seal off…

"DON'T" –Gaara yelled.

Then an unexpected terrifying explosion took place. Its ear-spliting noise put everyone in panic mode. People were screaming with fear since thick smoke was blocking their view. Temari and Kankurou looked at each other in terror. They knew Gaara and Hii were outside the barrier…

Hii opened her eyes again, sensing an absolute silence around her. She was lying on the ground with Gaara's body right above her. There was terror in his eyes… Fortunately, Gaara had created a sand sphere covering them both, just in time before the explosion. He was breathing heavily but his relief smile appeared again when he saw that Hii was alright. Gaara held Hii in his arm with his lips touching her temple. The sand fell down revealing them, unharmed. After a moment of dead air, all the people were cheering in contentment. Kankurou secretly wipe away the tears of dread on his face…

"It's over, Hii, everything is ok." Gaara said, placing his hands on Hii's shoulders.

Suddenly, Hii leaned her body against Gaara's, buried her head in his chest. She was crying…Never before did Gaara saw Hii cried this hard. He didn't understand what was going on. Gaara placed a hand on her hair, trying to comfort her. He tried to make Hii speak a word but nothing he did could stop her from sobbing.

"Gaara-kun, he wants to kill me…I can't believe it… he wants me dead…" – Hii said in tears.

"What are you talking about?" – Gaara asked worriedly.

"My grandpa…"

A piece of paper was falling from her hand. Gaara quickly took a look at it. No doubt it was the Raikage's unique handwriting. It says…

DIE!


	12. Chapter 11

Chapter 11: Betrothed

"That's it! He's put an end to the alliance!"

Kankurou said angrily, beating his hand down on the table. Gaara hastily stopped his brother before he damaged more objects in the office. Gaara understood thoroughly how Kankurou felt after he witnessed the unsuccessful attempt to murder Hii but destroying his office wasn't a good option at all. Kankurou threw himself on the coach again, wearing the troublesome look on his face. For the past few days, the relationship between Suna and Kumo was on the bad side. The Raikage continuously denied of being the one behind everything but failed to explain why his handwriting was on the letter. He then accused Suna of planning Hii's assassination under his name in order to ruin their family bond. However, according to Johou, it was the Kumo's ninjas who killed his two comrades and let him stay alive to carry the letter back. Johou even asked to seek revenge for those two but Gaara had rejected his aspiration. Revenge after revenge, it would only create a miserable loop for everyone…

Nevertheless, Gaara was more concerned about Hii's condition. He himself had experienced the feelings when someone he trusted and loved, turned out to be the one who assassinated him. Gaara was worried that Hii might follow his path of darkness and if it happened, he must stop her immediately. That was why Gaara spent every minute of his spare time around Hii ever since that incident. Yet, that matter didn't disturb him for long. Surprisingly, Hii's reaction was completely opposite to what Gaara thought. After a day hiding in her rooms, Hii finally came out, acting calmly and normally like nothing had happened. She refused to hear any information from the Raikage and often got overreacting when someone mentioned her grandfather in front of her face.

_That old man…what kind of grandfather he is when he even tries to kill his only grandchild…Seriously Gaara-kun, I think the reason my dad had to elope with mom was because my precious granddad always tried to murder them both. Nah, he hated my mom though…Anyway, if he wanted to kill me again right now, I couldn't care less… _

Although Hii used her trademark sarcastic tone to show off her I-don't-give-a-damn attitude, Gaara understood Hii was holding a pain deep down in her heart. It was just that she didn't want people to notice it…

"Oi, Gaara. What's now?" –Kankurou suddenly asked.

"What's what?" – Gaara replied, raising his eyes.

"Tch, you know what I'm talking about, damn it. That's rascal…Not only does he put all the blame on us, he even claims that if he manages to kill Hii-chan, it's still within his family issue and nothing concerns us. I will never accept it…She's like my sister, too…So Gaara, do something about it!"

Gaara slowly laced his hands together. There was firing determination in his eyes…

"Let's see if he can touch my Kazekanshi."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Marry me, Hii…<strong>_

_That echo…Gaara must be somewhere nearby…_

_**Marry me…**_

_There he was with one hand stretched out to reach Hii. She found herself smiling._

_**Marry me…**_

_Hii held Gaara's hand tightly._

_Suddenly, his hand became all shriveled just like someone was draining the life out of him. Hii looked at Gaara's face in a panic manner. His facial features started to change. His skin became dried and wrinkle. His eyes' rings were fading away. His red hair that Hii loved so much discolored little by little and fell off through her fingers. Gaara was like a dead corpse now but he was still smiling warmly at Hii…Or it wasn't Gaara anymore. The face, Hii remembered the face…_

_**Sister…**__ – its lips murmured._

_**Yuuki? Yuuki, wait…YUUKI…**_

"Hii-chan, wake up! Wake up!"

Hii opened her eyes as Temari was shaking her shoulders forcefully. Hii slightly squinted when a ray of sunlight gloriously shone through her room. It was morning already…Oh no, she was supposed to present at Gaara's office right now. Hii quickly kicked the blanket out of her way, intending to rush to her wardrobe but Temari's hand had stopped her.

"Ahhhh, Temari-neechan. I'm late!" – Hii groaned.

"Calm down! You're coming with us today, girl. There's something waiting for you." – Temari smiled broadly at Hii.

"Eh…"us"?"

Out of a sudden, Hii heard someone was clearing her throat. She looked to the door and found a plumb woman standing with her fan flapping gently. That woman respectfully bowed to Hii and told her to get ready immediately. Hii retreated into the bathroom, losing clue of what was going on. She could hear Temari's impatient footsteps resounded outside.

_What are they planning?_

Hii yawned and walked out of the bathroom. But before she could change into her ninja outfit, Temari had grabbed her hand and dragged her out of the room, with the chubby woman running behind them. They were all dashing with a speed of light towards the main building, and for some reason, the streets were packed with people. Hii had no time to make any more queries since she was pushed into a room in the ground-floor. As the door closed, Hii saw herself surrounded by many young women whom she recognized were the tailors and hairdressers in the village. Everyone looked excited…

"Here she is!" – the chubby woman said.

The next moment, Hii realized her old clothes were replaced by a beautiful long blue silky tube robe revealing her bare shoulders. A white sash was tied around her waist, creating a perfect highlight to the outfit.

"Make it tighter!"

Hii gasped when she felt someone tightened the sash on her waist. Seriously, she needed to breathe properly, too. Hii gave Temari a help-me- fast look but she only giggled in amusement.

"Shorten the robe a little bit. I don't know what the hell did our elders think, making the dress this long…"

"Is the coat ready yet? Hurry up, we don't have much time!"

"It's done! After a few bleaching, the 70-year-old coat is sparkling new again."

_That coat is made 70 years ago? How old… _

It turned out that the blue robe wasn't everything in the outfit. Hii was now wearing a white kimono-like coat outside of the blue robe. She curiously looked behind her back. Wow, this coat got a tail, too. Two women were staying by her side to secure her waist with an artistic designed obi. This made it even harder to keep the air flow in her body. Hii closed her eyes, trying to inhale some oxygen. When she opened her eyes again, someone had already brought a mirror in front of her face. Hii closely observed her reflection through the mirror…No doubt, she looked stunning. The blue color of the robe went perfectly well with the glistering white of the coat. To finish the outfit, the obi served as a fine touch to the whole thing. Hii noticed that two locks of hair on her sides had been tied together behind her head and was decorated by three golden brooches. This hairdo really made her look prettier…

"Ok, let's go Hii." – Temari said and pulled her out off the room again.

Hii found it hard to catch up with Temari's speed since she had to keep the dress out of her feet. They were still running nonstop towards the balcony's direction. Finally, they had arrived…

Gaara had already stood there in his Kazekage's robe, looking warmly at Hii. Kankurou, Baki, Johou and other higher-ups in the council had also presented. Hii glanced innocently at Gaara, who was showing very little emotion on his face, wondering what occasion it could be. He slowly approached Hii and Temari.

"I'll take it from here." – Gaara said.

Temari nodded and joined Kankurou in the line. Gaara gently held her hand.

"Gaara-kun, what's going on?" – Hii whispered while Gaara led her to where elder Ebizō was standing.

"I'm so glad that you agree to it after all." – Ebizō said with a smile.

_It? What it?_

Gaara's hand was still on her waist.

"Everyone, I have an announcement to make…" – Gaara began.

The atmosphere became silent.

"I think all of you have known that this lady next to me has been my friend, my comrade and my love…" – Gaara stopped to smile at Hii –"And because we see no reason to wait any longer, I'd like to announce my engagement with Hii. We will arrange an official wedding when I come to a legal age of marriage."

"So it isn't a joke after all, Gaara truly wants to marry me", Hii thought with pure happiness while observed the crowd cheering blissfully as they heard their Kazekage's decision. Although this was a little unpredictable, Hii didn't have any objection to it. She loved surprises after all. The villagers all tried to deliver their congratulations to the young couple. Hii found herself so blessed when she was accepted by them. She mildly placed her head on Gaara's shoulder.

"Also, with the council's approval, I'd like to appoint Hii to be Suna's first Kazekanshi. With all the respect, I hope we will have your support in the future…" – Gaara continued proudly.

_Kaze…Kanshi?_

The crowd was cheering even louder. Hii cautiously looked at Ebizō who was holding a blue gem stone with the "Kaze" kanji character on it. He gave it to Gaara. Looking at the ornament gave Hii a fright…

_No, this is just wrong… _

"Wait, Gaara-kun. Stop…stop" –Hii said while waving her hand in protest.

The atmosphere drew to silence again like something had sucked the sound out of everything. Gaara stared at Hii in astonishment. He didn't expect Hii to react like this in front of everyone.

"Uhm, you don't want to be my bride, Hii? I thought you agreed yesterday." – Gaara asked seriously.

Hii quickly pulled Gaara away from the balcony, a safe distance that the villagers below couldn't see what they were doing…

"Gaara-kun, I'll marry you, I want to marry you. But I can't become Kazekanshi. My grandfather will kill us both. If he knew I'm in love with you, he won't leave you alone!" – Hii whispered worriedly.

"That's why I want you to become my Kazekanshi. Only by doing that, the Raikage won't dare to harm you again, my dear." - Gaara replied calmly.

"I don't want you to get involved with him. I have to admit…I'm scared, Gaara-kun."

"Do you remember what you told me before setting out on a journey 1 year ago?"

"I…have faith in you…"

"Yes. Now, please have faith in me. I've vowed to protect you, Hii. You don't have to bear everything alone. You said you want to be my strength. From this moment on…please let me lend you mine."

Gaara put his hand behind Hii's neck and pulled her closed to his heart. Hii could see the council members were looking at them in anxiety. Hii knew she couldn't refuse either, it would only embarrass Gaara in front of these people. Hii softly put her hands on Gaara's chest and looked at him. She nodded…

Gaara happily attached the gem stone to Hii's obi and brought her to the balcony again. All of a sudden, Hii leaned against Gaara to give him a light lip-kiss. Gaara was absolutely surprised…The crowd burst out in cheering and screaming. Everyone was in such a good mood.

Hii felt a little bit unsecured.

This engagement…it could be the start of a brighter future...or an unexpected dark one.


	13. Chapter 12

Chapter 12: Starry night

Ok…Hii was now a Kazekanshi.

The job seemed to bore Hii to death since Gaara saw she was yawning up and down. He found it understandable since they were both tired after the meeting with their country's Daimyo. It was a usual thing that the Daimyo didn't know to make things short and keep talking about nonsense things before jumping to the main point. Gaara secretly looked at Hii and smiled. She was still writing incessantly though he could see the boredom on her face. They have been writing the same thing over and over again for hours, about how grateful they were for having received the blessing letters from other villages' leaders. Up till now, only 3 Kages out of the remaining 4 greatest nations had sent them their wishes for the young couple: Leaf, Stone and Water. There was absolutely no sign of the Hidden Cloud. This was also within Gaara's prediction although he had expected the Raikage to react stronger rather than staying suspiciously silent. Maybe he didn't care about Hii any longer. Maybe he had decided to ignore them both. Either way Gaara felt he shouldn't let his guard down. Nobody could guess what the Raikage was up to, including him, so precaution was completely necessary.

Gaara moderately rose from his chair and joined Hii on the couch. She looked really pretty in the Kazekanshi's robe. Gaara delicately stroke her silky hair. Gaara could see Hii'eyes were looking at him lovingly, her cheeks were flushing. She had stopped writing a while ago. Her arms were now embracing him. Her sweet manner always warmed his heart. Gaara suddenly wanted to act little spoiled in front of Hii. He leisurely lied down on the couch, pulling Hii on top of him. Gaara could hear her gasp in surprise, her face was blushing intensely. Its redness could be compared to that of a tomato. Gaara smiled at her in amusement.

"Let me go, Gaara-kun. We shouldn't let people see such thing in the office" – Hii said, her voice was shaking from embarrassment.

"But I want it that way. I'm the Kazekage, you're supposed to obey me, Hii" - Gaara said stubbornly and continued to hug Hii tighter.

Hii gave up the struggle and rested her head on Gaara's chest. His scent was so comfortable. His fingers unhurriedly fondled her back, stroking along her spine. Hii rose from Gaara to look at his face. He was looking back at her with those mesmerizing eyes again. Their temptation was so great that Hii couldn't fight back. The night was so silent.

They were alone…

Hii's shyness had disappeared. She placed her hand on Gaara's face and brought her lips closer to him. Hii closed her eyes. She could sense Gaara's breath on her lips... Gaara's hand was on her neck, pulling her down…

"Erm…hmmm…"

Gaara and Hii broke away from each other as they heard someone was standing at the door. To Hii's surprise, it was the chubby woman from before. Hii wondered why she would be here at this late.

"What is it?" – Gaara asked.

"Kazekage-sama, it's my duty to teach the young Kazekanshi-sama her new responsibilities and lead her to her new accommodation in this building."

"New room? I thought she could stay in mine…"

Gaara stopped as Hii gave him a jostle. The woman narrowed her eyes at Gaara then sighed.

"No, Kazekage-sama. Kazekanshi-sama will be offered a brand new room and she'll stay there until the official marriage takes place. And now for the instruction…"

"Can't we wait till tomorrow? I'm a little bit worn out right now" – Hii said with a yawn.

"We can't, Kazekanshi-sama. The elders had order me to get everything done today. Now please follow me."

Hii and Gaara slowly stood up and followed the woman. On the way, she ceaselessly talking about stuffs that a Kanshi needed to accomplish. Everything was the same as what Temari once told her before so Hii didn't pay much attention. Instead, she was busy playing with Gaara's fingers since their hands were side by side. Gaara still maintained a straight face.

"This is your new room, Kazekanshi-sama. What do you think?" – the woman smiled at Hii.

Hii glanced inside the room and felt very grateful. Somebody had transferred all her belongings from the old house to this new location. The room was nicely decorated and her stuffs had been put neatly into places. The wallpaper was her fancy color, too. On the window-sill, 5 cactus pots were standing in a line, which were all Hii's favorite. Hii turned around and smiled widely at the plumb woman.

"Thank you so much Kankurou, or should I say, Karasu." – Hii said.

"Eh…how do you know it's me?"

With a small *puff* sound, the woman transformed into Kankurou's favorite puppet, Karasu. Kankurou also revealed himself from the dark, scratching his head in embarrassment. He must have thought he could deceive them with his puppet trick.

"You too, Temari. Come out." – Gaara said, folding his arms.

Temari suddenly appeared behind Kankurou, grinning at them.

"So what do you think of your new room? I design it myself, as a gift to welcome you as an official member of our family, Hii-chan. I hope you like it!" – Temari said while placing a hand on Hii's shoulder.

Hii was lost for word. This was beyond happiness.

"I helped, too. I carried all your stuffs here and even put everything in the right place. I helped apply the wallpaper as well, see see?" – Kankurou said enthusiastically.

This was too much. What kankurou and Temari did to her was so touching. It was like her real family…

"Oh good heaven! I love you both!"

Hii said and hugged Temari and Kankurou tightly. Gaara could see Temari and Kankurou looking at each other in joy. Gaara pretty much wanted to join them. He wanted to feel their family bond, held it in his hand like it was the most precious property he had.

"Oi Gaara. Come join our group hug!" Kankurou yelled, stretching his hand toward Gaara.

"No!"

Gaara was snapped out of his fantasy. Kankurou started to whistle at Gaara but his younger brother had given him an are-you-a-gay look that made him shut up. Hii finally let go of Kankurou and Temari and quickly turned to Gaara, grabbing his arm again.

"I think we'll leave now. You two should rest." – Temari said gently.

"Remember to call me "niichan". I'm your older brother now." Kankurou said hopefully.

"Call him Kankurou is enough." Gaara mumbled.

"That's not fair. Temari got to be called neechan already. I think I deserve a title, too. Right, Hii-chan?"

"Don't worry about that, Kankurou-niichan…"

"YESSSS…You're the nicest kid ever!" – Kankurou roared in happiness.

Temari then excused herself and pulled Kankurou's ear, dragging him out of the corridor. Hii looked into Gaara's eyes again. This time, they were filled with delight. It had been awhile since the sand siblings had such a good moment together. Gaara led Hii to his room, which was only a short distance away from hers. However, Hii suggested that she would join Gaara later since the robe really got in the way. She quickly returned to her room, rummaged for her old comfortable clothes. She didn't have to search for long since they were all in the wardrobe, neatly folded. Hii hastily put them on while observing the new scenery from the window. Looking at the village from a different angel always amused her. Suddenly, Hii saw Matsuri, walking along the deserted street. Looking at her reminded Hii about the conversation they had a few days ago, about the so-call "business" between Matsuri and Gaara. Hii was curious again. She hadn't had a chance to ask Gaara about it. Hii got a feeling of annoyance. What was it that Gaara had to hide from her?

Hii promptly walked out of the room and came to Gaara's place. After getting his approval, she opened the door and entered his room. Gaara wasn't there. Judging from the sound of running water, he must be in the shower. Hii didn't want to spoil the mood they were having right now but the urge to know what was really happening between those two had taken over her mind. She just needed to ask Gaara a little information, a little harmless piece of information…The bathroom door creaked…

"Gaara-kun, I have something to as…sk…k…"

Hii's mouth dropped as she saw Gaara standing in front of her, half-naked. His towel was wrapped carelessly around his hip, covering the whole lower body. Hii wasn't prepared for this scene; however, she couldn't look away. His figure was just so perfect. Hii ran her eyes from Gaara's manly bare chest to his firm biceps. Those very arms of his had protected her from countless dangers. Looking at Gaara's body was so tempting that made Hii almost forget why she was here. Instead, Hii just wanted to embrace Gaara.

"So what is that you want to ask?" – Gaara said, slowly approaching Hii.

"Don't you want to put on some clothes first?" – Hii replied, flushing intensely.

"In front of you? Well…no." – Gaara smirked.

Hii smiled again and came close to Gaara. She put her hands on his shoulders, looking directly into his eyes…

"You and Matsuri-san…There is nothing between you two, right?"

"Huh, what do you mean? She's a ninja under my power and my student. That's all" – Gaara answered innocently.

_ Gaara doesn't know what I mean…_

"I mean…well…recently I see you two spending quite a lot of time together. She's with you almost everywhere. I wonder if there's something you are hiding from me, a "mission" or stuff like that…" – Hii said hesitantly.

Gaara had placed a hand on Hii's lips, signaled her to stay silence. He had become serious now. Gaara couldn't believe those small things could actually bother Hii that much. Nevertheless, he knew his duty was to clear away anything that clouded their relationship and he must do it now.

"Hii, listen. There is absolutely nothing between me and Matsuri, if what you mean is she and I are having an affair. I understand why you're being suspicious since Matsuri keeps following me around and all but I have nothing to do with her. Even I find her acting weird…Hey, you really think I'm seeing her behind your back?" – Gaara finished with astonishment.

Hii shook her head in denial, although she really did have that thought in mind…

"Well, that's good. And don't worry, I won't hide anything from you. You always have the right to know everything, my Kazekanshi."

Hii felt that she was cornered to the wall little by little. Gaara kept moving forward until Hii was completely stuck to the wall. He placed his hand on her sides, bringing his whole body nearer. Gaara was so close to Hii…her hands were gently moving up and down his nape, pulling him down for a kiss.

"Why is your face so red? This isn't the first time…" – Gaara teased.

"I'm more concern about your health. It's cold and you don't even have a shirt on."

"Warm me." – Gaara demanded.

As he finished, Gaara pressed his bare chest against Hii, making her blushed even more. He could feel her arms were hugging him strongly. Her body was so warm and comfortable. Gaara quickly slipped his hand under her light pink t-shirt, adoring her smooth skin. He could feel that Hii was trying to push his hand away as it was going upward. Gaara smirked at Hii.

"Gaara-kun, don't go there…If you want to kiss me then hurry up and do it." – Hii said with a tremble voice, still struggling with Gaara's hand.

"Right now I'm not interested in your lips."

Gaara suddenly rubbed his lips against Hii's neck, kissing it intensely. Hii let out a moan, which excited Gaara more than usual. Somehow Gaara knew one of Hii's most sensitive parts was her neck and he had decided to go for it. He kissed her from side to side, which only resulted in Hii moaning seductively in his ears. He could feel that her body had heated up. Such an incredible warmth! Hii had given up fighting with his hand; instead she was seizing his arms, enjoying the intense make out. His bare skin was so irresistible. Gaara's free hand rampaged over Hii's feminine premiere...Hii bite her lips…Gaara was squeezing her tightly…Their body almost glued to one another. Hii felt _something_ funny was touching her from the below…

Hii felt Gaara was taking away his hand from her front. He was sliding them on her side, gently down to her thighs. Gaara was sucking her earlobe as well and Hii realized she liked it a lot. A of a sudden, Gaara lifted her up with her back against the wall. Right now, his hands were on her buttocks preventing her from falling while her legs were curving around his hips. They were looking at each other. There was only passion in their eyes. Without words, Gaara reached up to Hii's lips to kiss her, but this time a different kiss. This was their first French kiss ever. His tongue worked cleverly to enter her mouth, comforted every corner of it. Hii relaxed her mouth and let her tongue move in sync with Gaara's. This moist smooth snogging was great. The affection was indescribable. Hii automatically dug her fingers deep in Gaara's hair, pressing his head closer for a wilder kiss. Hii moved her legs a little bit…

Gaara suddenly dropped her to the floor.

Hii realized in embarrassment that Gaara's towel had fallen down since Hii moved her legs a little…too much. Gaara awkwardly turned away while trying to hold his towel. Hii's face was redder than ever now. That _something_…Hii shook her head to fight away the thought that she actually caught a glimpse of that _something_…

Fine, she had seen that _something_.

Gaara came out of the bathroom again, this time with his clothes on. He silently sat down next to Hii on his bed. Looking at her facial expression, Gaara could tell that Hii was also embarrassed by what had just happened.

"Did you see anything?" – Gaara asked without looking at Hii.

"Hmm…a little" – Hii said, trying to sound as much innocent as possible.

Gaara caught Hii's eyes again. He didn't know what to say either. The disturbing silence went on…

Then, Hii laughed relaxingly, shaking her head at Gaara. Gaara also smiled at her while scratching his head. After a moment of awkwardness, they could finally act normal in front of each other again. Gaara pulled his fiancée close to him again.

"You gave me a fright back then" – Hii mumbled.

"Sorry." – Gaara whispered.

"Ah, I want to show you something Gaara-kun."

Hii quickly held Gaara's hand and led him to the window. There, she showed him the night sky full of shinny stars. It had been a while since Suna's sky had this much stars. The scenery looked so magical and romantic. Hii started to name each constellation that she knew with Gaara watching her attentively. To Gaara, Hii was more worth looking at than those stars in the sky.

"You know, my mom taught me about them since I was very young. Later grandpa taught me more…"

Hii stopped in mid-sentence. She hated it when she accidentally mentioned the Raikage again. All the good memory together and now the hatred made her heart feel a stinging pain. He was her only remaining flesh and blood after all.

"Gaara-kun…I don't think my grandpa is a murderer. Deep down inside my heart, I don't think he want to kill me." – Hii said sadly.

"Hii, I don't know about the Raikage as much as you do but until this moment, he hasn't found any evidence that prove he's innocent. I can't trust him, you know I can't…"

"I know but I don't want to believe it."

"Me too. However, people aren't what they look like, my uncle Yashamaru for example…Anyway, the priority now is your safety. I will protect you. We'll solve Raikage's mysteries if there are any, I promise."

Hii smiled at Gaara in relief. She knew she could always count on him.

Then they saw the special star they were looking for shinning vividly through the sky…

The star of Hope.


	14. Chapter 13

Chapter 13: Secrets

"Seriously, I'm fine Johou-senpai. So stop asking those questions!" – Matsuri said grumpily.

"Fine, fine but you were crying again last night. I can't ignore that fact." – Johou replied sympathetically.

"If you are that good at sneaking around, why don't you join the Anbu?"

"Nah, that would be cool but I hate their masks. Not very artistic, ha ha."

Matsuri gave Johou a confused look and turned away. She didn't know how johou saw her running along the street with her eyes filled with tears like that. This guy…he was scary somehow. However, Matsuri really needed someone to comfort her right now and Johou always appeared at the right time…

"I'm sad. I lost Gaara-sensei for real…"

Then Matsuri went on telling Johou how bad she felt when seeing Gaara proposed to Hii on the balcony, when Hii kissed Gaara in front of public, when she realized she actually had no chance with Gaara from that moment on. Matsuri was hurted. Her heart couldn't take everything that huge in such a short day. She even confessed to Johou how she tricked Hii with the wrong information about her and Gaara. Johou simply kept silent and listened to Matsuri's words, smiling at her mysteriously.

"How courageous! You even lied to Hii about the Kazekage's compliments to you? That's a good prank there…" – Johou said, clapping his hand.

"But I feel very bad about it. I mean…I didn't mean to do it in the first place. Seeing her with Gaara-sensei makes me angry somehow. Maybe I'll just stay away from them from now on." – Matsuri replied.

Johou came forward to hug Matsuri's shoulder. Matsuri was touched by this friendly reaction. Johou was a good guy after all…

"To be frank, I feel sorry for Kazekanshi-sama…" – Johou whispered.

Matsuri looked at him, losing clue of what he meant.

"Kazekage-sama doesn't love her. He just wants her to stay because of the barrier. He married her for only that purpose."

"You mean Gaara-sensei uses Hii?" – Matsuri asked in disbelief.

"What I mean is he just tries to protect this village but yeah…you can put it that way." – Johou smiled again.

Matsuri was numb with fear as well as excitement. She was scared because she would never imagine Gaara to be that kind of ruthless man, taking advantage of the one who loved him deeply. However, she couldn't hide the excitement since she still got a chance to steal Gaara's heart. Those emotions mixed up strongly that made her forget about Johou's existence. He was still talking about how reliable his source of information was since he was a council's member and so on. Johou seemed to have no idea what Matsuri was planning.

"Hey you two…"

Both Matsuri and Johou turned around.

"Kazekanshi-sama has called for you."

* * *

><p>Hii was sitting at her table, rearranging all the files. She was trying to organize a suitable group for the upcoming mission. Hii needed two people to accompany her to the meeting with the Land of Wind's Daimyo. It seemed like he wanted to cut down on Suna's budget once again and Hii's job was to persuade him not to do such a foolish thing. Although this was during the peace era but he shouldn't take his military strength for granted like that. Besides, Hii didn't want to fail her first mission as a Kazekanshi. Since Gaara was needed for other job while Temari and Kankurou were both away from the village, Hii had no choice but to pick her own team. Sari was in charge of a young ninja class this morning…That left Hii with Johou- a safe choice and Matsuri – whom she trusted enough. However, there was something that Hii wanted to settle down with Matsuri before this mission started.<p>

"Come in." – Hii said as she heard someone knocking on the door.

"Kazekanshi-sama…"

Matsuri's business tone woke Hii from her thoughts. Judging from her response, surely this girl didn't want to improve their relationship at all. Besides, Hii had decided to give up making Matsuri call her in a more informal way.

"Where is Johou-san?" – Hii asked.

"He might be late a little." – Matsuri answered coldly.

Hii realized this was the perfect time.

"Before we go, may I ask you something Matsuri-san?" – Hii said gently.

Matsuri showed no vivid reaction. Hii cleared her throat…Somehow this conversation seemed like a monologue to her.

"You love Gaara-kun too, right?"

Those words stroke Matsuri out of her safe zone. So Hii knew about her feelings already. There wasn't any reason that she should hide it. At least now she had determined to get the Kazekage's love, Matsuri made up her mind to confront Hii.

"Yes, I do. What can you do about it?" – Matsuri replied, throwing Hii a challenging look.

_She has more guts than I thought._

"Nothing…curiosity only. I've always sensed that we aren't on good terms with each other for a long time but I didn't expect Gaara-kun to be the cause."

Matsuri stayed silent.

"I love him too, Matsuri-san. I love him more than anything in this world. So I will terminate anything that dares to come between Gaara-kun and me. Unless it's his will to leave me…I will never let anyone take him away." – Hii said firmly.

Matsuri looked at Hii again. It seemed like Matsuri was angry by what the young Kazekanshi had just said.

"I want to warn you that your little lies won't work again. I trust Gaara-kun more than you, Matsuri-san…"

"I only told the truth." – Matsuri said abruptly.

Hii gave Matsuri a questioning look. Matsuri also looked back at her, trying to hide the thrill in her eyes. The game had started, there was no turning back now…

"I feel sorry for you, Kazekanshi-sama. You don't even understand Gaara-sensei and you call yourself his lover? You think he married you for love? No. he only did that because…"

"Are you two going?" – Johou said, sticking his head from the door.

The two girls stopped their discussion immediately. Hii looked sharply at Matsuri for the last time then headed out of the door. She was feeling uncomfortable from hearing Matsuri's words. Hii was angry at the thought that Matsuri criticized her of not thoroughly understanding Gaara. However, Hii stopped when she heard Matsuri's voice.

"I won't lose to you, Hii. Mark my words."

"You can take Gaara –kun away in your dream." – Hii replied coldly.

They had reached the big gate of the village. The tension between the girls was so terrible that all of Johou's jokes seemed to be an epic fail. Hii and Matsuri didn't even look at each other. Their distance was wider…And then, Hii saw Gaara was standing with Baki near the gate. Gaara looked so pale, like he had received a bad news.

Gaara turned around to see Hii's three-man cell walking out of Suna. Without warning, he dashed towards Hii, his face didn't look so good.

"Halt this mission. Hii, you're staying in the village. I will meet the Daimyo myself later!"

As he said, Gaara grabbed Hii's wrist and dragged her back into the village. Baki was running behind them. Hii didn't understand what was going on, once again. Sometimes she just wished Gaara could tell her the reason before pulling her to places.

"From now on, you'll stay right here in Suna. Don't go leave the village without my permission; I won't assign you anymore ambassador or outside missions. Don't worry…You will take care of everything while I'm not around. If there's an emergency, try to hold the position and wait for me to get back, don't go outside your own barrier…" – Gaara mumbled in his mouth.

"What?" – Hii said, trying to free her wrist from Gaara's tight grip.

She could see that Gaara was worried. He had stopped walking. Gaara slowly turned to face Hii…

"The Akatsuki…I think they're after you."


	15. Chapter 14

Chapter 14: Deception

_I'm hunted._

Hii lazily walked out of the bathroom and threw herself on Gaara's bed. The night was cold and dark as pitch. Another cold wind slashed through Hii's face, leaving her a chill. This had been the third night Gaara didn't come home since he last told Hii about the Akatsuki. Hii closed her eyes and thought hard. The fact that the Akastuki was hunting her didn't scare her one bit; on the contrary, Hii felt she was ready to conquer them any time. However, Gaara's reaction concerned her more than ever. Hii had a strong feeling that Gaara was hiding something important. Even though Gaara had ensured her that he only went out to patrol the area, that reason couldn't satisfy Hii. "There's definitely something else.", Hii thought. Little by little, she sunk herself in the conversation they had before, trying to find a clue…

"_They had known you're the last Imai already." – Gaara said, looking directly at Hii – "There's no other way now, we'll have to protect you at all cost!"_

"_I agree with Kazekage-sama." – Baki continued –"Worse, if the Akastuki has you, they will have the secret of all the Imai's shielding Justus. We can't afford to let that happen."_

_Hii narrowed her eyes at the ceiling. _

"_So the rumour spreads quite fast, I guest…" – she smirked._

_Hii's eyes suddeny met Gaara's. Quickly, the Kazekage understood what his young fiancée was thinking._

"_No, the Raikage had nothing to do with this…"- Gaara hastily said –"Trust me, Hii, your grandfather didn't hire the Akatsuki to kill you or anything. It was him who warned us about your safety, he asked me to take care of you…"_

That was it! Hii abruptly sat up and anxiously bit her nail. How could the Raikage know they were after his granddaughter if he had nothing to do with them? Everything was so illogical and Gaara, damn Gaara, he didn't tell her exactly where the hell he went.

_Relax…at least I know grandpa was innocent…_

That idea flashed through Hii's head and actually created a smile on her face. Lately, Gaara had forced the Raikage to tell the truth about the bomb letter he sent Hii. And here's the truth: Raikage admitted to have written that letter when he was angry because Hii refused to come back to the village of the Hidden Cloud. To him, it was such an insult when his granddaughter didn't obey him so he said "I wrote it when I lost my temper". Still, he denied of having inserted the bomb into the letter. The Kumo ninjas who delivered it came back unharmed but Johou lost two teammates. Now, it was possible that the Akatsuki disguised themselves firstly as Suna's ninjas to take the letter, sealed the exploding tag inside and then gave it to Johou as ninjas from Kumo. It did make sense to Hii though... Akatsuki…they were sure cunning…

There was a creak at the door.

"Gaara-kun?"

But it was Johou.

"I'm coming to check on you, Kazekanshi-sama. I was worried about you."

Though being a little disappointed, Hii gently smiled at him. Gaara had told her not to get close to this guy but at this moment, he was the only one who still bothered about her condition. At least at this very moment…

"Is Kazekage-sama back yet?" – Hii asked hopefully.

"No, I'm afraid not." – Johou replied instantly.

Hii sighed and diverted her eyes to the ground, trying to hide her sadness. Gaara was acting weirder day by day. Even Temari and Kankurou didn't tell Hii what their little brother was up to, and she wasn't sure if they knew or not… But Hii hated this feeling. The feeling of being kept in the dark…

"Kazekanshi-sama should rest. You shouldn't let Kazekage-sama bothers you that much, it'll ruin your beauty. I'm sure you don't want to get wrinkles by the age of 20." – Johou grinned.

Hii nodded with a forced smile. Making others worry about her made her feel sinful. No, Hii suddenly decided that she shouldn't let Johou concern about her anymore and besides, she needed to be alone. Completely alone and just waited for Gaara to come back. Hii quickly excused herself but before she could close the door, Johou had stopped her. He looked so cautious as if he was afraid that someone could eardrop on their conversation. Johou shortened the distance between them. It made Hii feel uncomfortable. She stepped back, with her hand remained firmly on the door.

"By any chance, Kazekanshi-sama… How's the Shukaku chakra? Are you keeping it?"

Hii threw Johou a conspicuous look. But well, he was in the council anyway.

"Gaara-kun has it."

"Oh I see. Hmm, he must have hid it very carefully."

"Ask him."

There was a silence between them. Johou's eyes look like they were asking Hii the "that's it?" question. It was annoying but Hii had tried her best not to let Johou discover how she truly felt. Having no intention to prolong this awkward moment, Hii gently pushed Johou away from the door.

"Good night, Johou-san."

Before she could hear Johou said anything, Hii hurriedly closed the door then lie on the bed again. Putting her arm on her forehead, Hii smirked at the idea that the council was now using Johou as a spy to find out where Gaara kept the chakra. Why were they so obsessed with it anyway? Because of its power? Because they didn't trust her? Either way, Hii couldn't care less. Dealing with the Akatsuki was painful enough, she didn't need the council to put any more burden on her. She would be thankful if those old men could leave her and Gaara alone. More exactly, leave the chakra alone.

_Leave Akatsuki alone_

_Leave Itachi alone_

_Leave Sasuke alone_

_Leave Yuuki alone_

_Alone_

* * *

><p>Gaara was walking through the gate of Suna. The sun had just emerged from the horizon, casting its first sunlight of the day. Its reflection on Gaara's unique red hair made him look more stunning. However, it couldn't make up to his weary face after a hard-working night. Gaara turned his head around. Kankurou and Temari were still following him, smilling at him encouragingly. Nevertheless, Gaara still felt disappointed at himself. He failed the mission, what a shame. How could he face Hii now? Gaara couldn't think of an answer…Gaara unconsciously looked ahead. There on the street, Baki was waiting for them. He walked towards the Kazekage. Gaara shook his head. Of course Baki understood, he just sighed.<p>

"So I assume that this mission is a failure." – Baki said as they continued walking.

"Yes, indeed." – Gaara replied in disappointment.

"Don't blame yourself, Kazekage-sama. The Akatsuki is strong, you know that…"

Gaara stayed silent. How could he not blame himself when he was the one in charge of the mission?

"Still, Gaara…"- Baki lowered his voice –"…when will you tell Hii the truth? Bee's also her family, I think she has the right to know that the Akatsuki has captured him!"

"And then what? She'll run crazily out of the village, turning every stone up to find him. And if Bee's dead, which I'm 90% sure that he is right now, she'll find the Akatsuki to get revenge. And the result: she'd be killed!"

Baki looked at Gaara, speechlessly. His Kazekage was certainly under pressure…

"I feel so useless."

Gaara suddenly stopped walking. Both Temari and Kankurou were looking at each other anxiously. It was true that they agreed to help Kumo find their Bee-sama. For the last three days, Gaara had been looking in every corner of the desert, trying to find the Akatsuki's hideout. They did locate it, fortunately. However, they couldn't get through the barrier those foxy criminals set up. Gaara had given every effort he got but it seemed like the Akatsuki had beaten him again this time. Everything was over before the sand siblings could reach them. There was nothing left, no sign of Bee, absolutely nothing.

No one wanted to admit it. They all knew Bee was dead.

Gaara inhaled deeply and continued a few steps ahead. Whether he wanted it or not, he must find a way to break this news gently to Hii. Otherwise, he would break her heart. Seeing his lover in pain was an unbearable torture to him. Hii had lost everything once, she didn't deserve to lose another beloved family member. But Gaara knew he had no other choice. The truth was the truth and he got to tell her in the most delicate way he could. Yes, that could be fine…

"So what will you tell her about Sasuke? Just tell her that he joined the Akatsuki? That he's the one who kidnapped Bee?" – Temari asked hesitantly.

_Oh great, the Sasuke problem._

"Guess that's the only way I could tell her." – Gaara replied in an indifferent manner.

"Hmph, brother…" – Temari placed her hand on Gaara's shoulder -"I don't know what's your plan but Hii's a sharp girl. She might have figured out you're hiding something already so if I were you, I'd tell her the truth. And what comes next…is her decision."

Temari's words still followed Gaara as he walked through the great door in the main buiding. He would let Hii know the truth for sure. Gaara ensured himself that his prediction about Hii's reactions to the news was just him being sceptical.

However, when Gaara entered his room he gave up his determination right away. Hii was sleeping soundly on his bed with a peaceful expression on her face. She looked so untroubled and carefree, lying in such a relaxing posture. Gaara swore he could look at Hii sleeping for hours. No, he couldn'tell her. That would be too cruel! Her lips were moving, she was talking in her sleep. Gaara slowly approached Hii and lie down next to her. He quietly lifted her head and let it rest on his arm, pulling her close. Suddenly, Hii woke up.

"Gaara-kun!" – Hii yelled happily, rubbing her face on his chest.

Gaara just smiled at Hii like usual, his arms were embracing her firmly.

"Where have you been? What happened? Are you hurt?" – Hii unconsciously blurted out.

Gaara simply shook his head. He was trying to be his normal self. Other than that, Hii would notice something strange right away.

"I'm glad that you're home safe and sound" – Hii continued with a smile – "I was worried, who knows what'd happen if you encountered the Akatsuki…Oh, you should've let me go with you Gaara-kun."

"I'm fine, Hii. Calm down." – Gaara said and kissed her forehead –"By the way, who's Yuuki? I heard you mentioned that name in your sleep."

Hii suddenly became silent.

"My…sister."

Gaara understood. Hii must have had that nightmare about the night her clan was wiped out. Maybe she remember how her sister was murdered, how painful. Don't want Hii to be bothered by the past, Gaara held her tight in his arms again, hoping to comfort her a little bit.

"Wow, there's a lot of dirt on your clothes." – Hii giggled, flicking off the dust – " And you really need a shower."

"Sorry, 3 days already huh…" – Gaara mumbled, embarrassing.

Hii smiled and pulled him down for a kiss. Right now she only needed Gaara to be with her, everything else didn't matter anymore, including the unsolved puzzle in her head. Gaara's lips just wiped them all out of her mind.

Gaara tenderly pushed Hii away and rose from the bed. He couldn't lie, he had to tell her. If not, he might regret it forever.

"It was Sasuke who warned the Raikage about the Akatsuki."

Gaara didn't know why he started the story this way.

"Uchiha Sasuke? Where is he? Is he okay?" – Hii asked hastily, pulling Gaara's sleeve.

"It seems like…that guy's joined the Akatsuki." – Gaara continued.

"It can't be…he's after Itachi, there's no way he'd join them. He HATES them."

Gaara chose to stay silent.

"Then why he still bothered telling grandpa about the Akatsuki's plan to capture me?"

"I don't know, Hii, I really don't know. Maybe it's another way to say tht the Akatsuki will get you no matter what…" - Gaara sighed –"Look, I haven't talk to him in person so I don't know if he's completely hopeless or what but this is real, Hii. He's one of the Akatsuki now."

Gaara turned around and saw the disappointment in Hii's eyes. Sasuke used to be her best friend or something like that, Gaara didn't care. In fact, he didn't care much about Sasuke and saw Hii got sad because of that guy somehow made him feel uncomfortable. Hii had drawn her legs closer to her body, resting her pretty face on her knees. She didn't say a word, only sadness in her eyes. Gaara didn't know what to do either. He kneeled down in front of his lover, gently stroking her cheek. Sometimes, it was best to let her calm down on her own.

"And so, that's all?" – Hii asked.

"Yes, my dear. That's all" – Gaara smiled.


	16. Chapter 15

Chapter 15: The truths revealed

The next day serenely passed by without anyone mentioned about the Akatsuki incident. Suna seemed to become peaceful under Hii's eyes once again. Though she was feeling blue about what happened to Sasuke, Hii knew she couldn't let the emotion drag her down. Friend or no friend, it wasn't something in her power anymore. But still, Hii couldn't stop her sadness… However, it was such a nice evening that Hii wanted to go out with Gaara. What could be better than a date after work?

"No, no, I said no."

"Come one, Gaara-kun, just tonight. I want to go to that oasis." – Hii said in her sweetest tone.

"No you can't. You have to stay right here in Suna. That's our deal." – Gaara said patiently.

"I know, but I want a date there…"

"If you want a date, we can do it in my bedroom." - Gaara replied wickedly.

"I'm not joking…Hey, stop that, Gaara-kun…"

Gaara abruptly pulled Hii down to his lap and made her sit there. Hii was struggling effortlessly since his arm was wrapped tightly round her waist. Gaara knew Hii liked it, and he liked it too. Never before did Gaara want to give Hii his best attention than right now. Maybe the guilt of not telling her the other truth, the shame of failing the mission made him want to make it up to her. Hii didn't need to know that Bee was killed yet, not killed but just missing. Buried deep in his thought, Gaara unconsciously brushed his lips against Hii's neck, which actually gave her a jolt. Never mind that, Gaara continued kissing it any way. Her soft skin melted his heart. He couldn't ask for a better evening…

"Geez, you two are supposed to work." – Matsuri's voice pierced through their ears.

"For the last time…please KNOCK." – Gaara said grumpily.

"I'm sorry." Maturi said, sticking out her tongue.

Gaara was pissed by Matsuri's interference but he tried his best to react properly. To be fair, Gaara knew it was his fault. It was his office and yes, he was supposed to work anyway. Gaara gently pushed Hii away from his lap but to his surprise, Hii didn't move an inch. It seemed strange to him since Hii was the kind of girl who didn't like to show their intimacy in front of other people. Hii was still looking at Matsuri intensively while Matsuri tried to avoid her fierce eyes.

"What is it?" – Hii asked coldly.

"I have something to report to Gaara-sensei. Privately." – Matsuri replied.

"You can tell us both." – Hii insisted.

"I don't think so, besides you have no right to listen to Gaara-sensei's private message. He's the Kazekage, I don't think a Kanshi like you have the right to interfere if he doesn't want you to."

"You…"

"Ok you two, stop it."

Gaara sighed and looked at the girls.

"Matsuri, Hii does have the right to know if she wants to. She's your Kazekanshi after all. Respect that."

"But Gaara-sensei, this is something that I can only tell you."

Honestly, Matsuri's serious tone started to concern Gaara a great deal. Gaara didn't know if she'd heard any bad news that she could only trust him to find a solution. Or maybe she had some personal trouble, who knew. Whatever it was, she was his student so Gaara felt he should listen to her problem at least.

Suddenly, a ray of thought crossed through Gaara's head. Matsuri might want to inform him about the Shukaku's chakra that he asked her to keep for him. Gaara remembered how miserable he was when the council kept asking him if Hii had sealed that disgusting power inside him and he had no choice but to ask Matsuri to take care of the chakra. It was their secret. Hii didn't know about this. She would get mad if she knew. Didn't want Matsuri to be awkward, Gaara had no choice but to…

"Hii, could you please leave us a second." – Gaara said reluctantly.

Hii certainly looked displeased.

"It won't be long…please…" – Gaara continued.

"No, it will be long." – Matsuri said defiantly.

"Fine, I'll go checking my barrier."

Hii tried to suppress her nearly exploded anger. Well, what could she do now since Gaara had requested her to leave? Her jealousy slowly took over her mind but luckily, Hii could still feel her dignity telling her not to make a fuss over it. Being furious wouldn't do her any good, it would only expose her weakness to Matsuri and make her lose face in front of Gaara. Calm down, Hii, calm down.

Gaara helplessly saw Hii walking through the door of his office without saying another word. Now, it was just him and Matsuri alone. Gaara wondered what could be so important that Matsuri had to tell him secretly. Matsuri had locked the door behind her, how suspicious.

"Gaara-sensei…"

Gaara was waiting in silence.

"Gaara-sensei, I…well, I…I love you."

* * *

><p>Hii found herself sitting alone on the night guarding post of Suna once again, looking at the starless sky. A storm was coming, she could feel it but she didn't care. It didn't make much difference to her since she wasn't allowed to set foot out of this village. However, there was another storm inside her heart, a storm that was more powerful than that of mother nature. Hii felt she had become unstable more than ever. Hii was mad at Matsuri's cunning arrangement, mad at Gaara's innocence, mad at her unreasonable self. She had no right to blame Gaara for anything, he didn't know about Matsuri's feelings towards him. Guys were so naïve. Although Hii knew it was only a harmless teacher-student relationship, she wanted Gaara to be hers and hers only. Her selfishness had voiced this time, she found it hard to accept Matsuri's existence around Gaara. Even though Gaara had ensured her from time to time that she was the one he was in love with, it seemed like Hii wasn't pleased with his words. Even Hii didn't know what she wanted and she was struggling with herself to find out what it was. She couldn't expect anything more from Gaara, he was perfect, he loved her, he could die saving her, he was her everything. It was just that she couldn't trust him at some points.<p>

Hii couldn't help thinking about Sasuke at the same time. Her first best friend now turned to be among her enemies. Hii tried to recall all her impressions with Sasuke to see what went wrong with this guy. Yes, Hii remember his eyes, the eyes of an avenger, full of murderous attempt and hatred. But for a time, Hii swore those sorrow eyes were gone and replaced by such nice and peaceful ones. There was a time Sasuke wanted to give up seeking revenge and live a different life. But why now?

_Sasuke-kun, what's gone wrong? I want to know. I want to know so badly. _

"May I join you, Kazekanshi-sama?"

It was Johou who discreetly appeared behind Hii, smiling joyfully as usual. Hii nodded and continued to stare at the sky. This guy really knew when to show up in front of people, come to think of it, he always turned up when someone was in need of a companion.

"It's very weird to see you alone like this. Usually, you'd be wth Kazekage-sama or Temari-sama."

"They all have their own business, I guess."

"So they abandoned you like an abandoned ship, ha ha."

Seriously, Hii didn't think highly of Johou's joke. It was lame. So she decided to stay politely silent.

"Say, Johou-san, why did you ask me about the chakra?" – Hii asked suddenly.

She could tell that Johou was observing her with interest.

"Well, you might have guessed the reason already, my dear Kazekanshi-sama. The councilers don't trust you enough…"

"I know that."

"And they don't trust Kazekage-sama either." – Johou continued –"They wouldn't be very pleased if they knew that Kazekage-sama still refuses to insert the chakra inside him, well it's their doubt anyway."

"I can assure you that Gaara has the chakra…inside him." – Hii lied.

"Ha ha, it's between you and Kazekage-sama. We also heard of other news like Kazekage-sama has asked someone close to him to hide the chakra. Not you, not Kankurou-sama, not Temari-sama, so how about…Matsuri?"

Hii instantly froze when she heard Johou said so. True that it had been a long time since she didn't asked Gaara about the Shukaku chakra. Because she had given him ultimate authority over it, she didn't dare to ask him again. But why the hell would he give it to Matsuri? She wasn't strong enouh to take such huge responsibility.

"My theory is that Gaara-sama may afraid the council has already put you and his siblings under surveilliance so Matsuri is a safe choice. No one cares about her anyway, she's not outstanding, she's just normal, no one will think Gaara-sama could ask such an amateur to protect the chakra…"

_Their own business, Matsuri talked about "their own business"… _

"But they're quite close, I think. I hope you don't get jealous but…during your 1 year absence, those two was kind of having a little romance. People saw them together everywhere. You couldn't believe what people said, such thing like Kazekage-sama had Matsuri to replace you."

"I don't give a damn about that crap." – Hii replied with a smile.

Johou was startled by Hii's reaction.

"Look, Johou-san, I appreciate the way you try to keep me company but you don't have to tell me about Gaara-kun and Matsuri. I don't believe you. But even if it was the truth, what they used to have belongs to the past and I don't care. I only care about the present that Gaara-kun loves me, that's enough. And for the chakra thing, Matsuri has nothing to do with it. I inserted it into Gaara-kun's body myself."

"What if it was Matsuri who told me about Kazekage-sama's plan?"

At this point, Hii didn't know what to say. There were so many things that she wasn't sure about. She was lost in the maze of "truths" that people trapped her in. Gaara, Matsuri, Johou, who should she trust? She got to ask Gaara about everything, she needed to clear everything up in her mind. She needed to settle this down once and for all.

"Oi Hii-chan, why the rush?"

Kankurou was calling her name from afar when he saw her passing by in such a hasty manner. Hii abruptly stopped and waved at him. Maybe Kankurou could help her with this crisis. He could know the answer.

"Come on in, it's been a while since we last had a drink together." – Kankurou said enthusiastically.

Hii slowly came to Kankurou's place and sat down next to him. He didn't wear any weird make-up tonight, which created a huge difference in his appearance. Hii felt like she shouldn't waste any time and came straight to the topic.

"Kankurou-niichan, did Gaara-kun tell you anything about…the chakra?"

"No, of course not. He didn't tell me anything. I thought you two had dealed with it already, what's wrong?" – Kankurou asked in surprise.

Hii couldn't hold back and tell Kankurou everything she heard from Johou. She was desperate about it. She even told Kankurou about her jealousy, her selfishness in her relationship with Gaara. Hii let it flow out unstoppably. It felt so good when you could tell other about your problem…

"Wow, I thought it was something more serious…" – Kankurou laughed in relief –"I can tell you that my younger brother only has you in mind, always. You can't imagine how sad he was when you weren't in Suna, Hii-chan. Matsuri was just his stalker, that's all. And the chakra thing, personally I don't think Gaara could do that…Why don't you ask him?"

So Kankurou didn't know about it either. However, his words had somehow comforted her a little bit. Hii decided to let everything off the hook tonight because she was quite worn out herself, mentally. They continued to sit along side with each other, chatting about all sort of things in the world. Kankurou was such a clever talker. Surely, his jokes were way better than those of Johou's.

"Now that's funny." – Hii smiled – "I remember Sasuke told me this story once, I couldn't stop laughing back then."

"Nah that guy, I can't believe he becomes a lunatic like that." – Kankurou said.

"Yes, I couldn't believe it myself at first. But I guess his hatred has won…" – Hii said sadly.

"Tch, joining the Akatsuki, capturing Killer Bee, he's so hopeless now…"

Hii smiled at what Kankurou had just said. Suddenly, she froze.

"What did you just say?" – Hii asked in horror.

"That Sasuke joined the Akatsuki…"

"After that?"

"He captured Killer Bee, your grandfather's brother?"

Kankurou looked at Hii's face and he realized that he had made a huge mistake.

"Oh wait…Gaara told you everything already, right? Hii-chan, answer me…" – Kankurou asked in a panic mode.

Hii shook her head. She couldn't imagine something serious like that would happen. Bee was caught, he would have been dead by now, dead. DEAD! Her beloved Bee, how could this happen to him?

"Err…uhmm…Hii-chan, are you there? I'm sorry. It's not Gaara's fault, he doesn't want you to get hurt. He did try his best to rescue Bee but… Anyway, it's the truth…Hey don't scare me, girl. Hii-chan!"

"HOW DARE YOU ALL HIDE IT FROM ME?" – Hii yelled in despair –"HOW COME I'M THE ONLY ONE WHO DIDN'T KNOW? YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO TELL ME, I TRUSTED YOU."

The whole pub was looking at the miserable Kankurou and their furious Kazekanshi. Kankurou tried to hold Hii's shoulders but she kept pushing his hands away. Before Kankurou could grab her wrist, Hii hurriedly ran through the door, headed straight to the main building. She needed to ask Gaara where Bee was. She was angry at him for not telling her the shocking news but right now she just wanted to save Bee. Gaara could help her on this. Hii hardly cared about anything else, including the stupid chakra. Whatever, screw the chakra!

Finally, Hii arrived at Gaara's office. The door was locked. No time left…Hii smacked it open.

Hii felt like she's just had a heart attack for the pain came so abruptly and she couldn't fight back. Her heart was sobbing endlessly like someone was squeezing it with an immeasurable force. She wanted to scream but her voice couldn't come out. The feeling of being betrayed by Gaara was tearing Hii apart. She stood still, staring at the two hugging figures in the dim light. They saw her. Matsuri was throwing Hii a victorious look, which was like a knife piercing through her heart. Hii couldn't utter a word. Anger had choked her throat. She slowly backed away from the room…

"Hii, I can explain. Listen to me!"

Gaara hastily pushed Matsuri away and ran towards Hii, who was looking at him like a stranger. It was Matsuri's fault all the way. She suddenly clung on to Gaara when he got his guard down. Gaara didn't have time to react. To make it worse, Hii came in at that very moment. He had no choice but to make it clear to Hii, it wasn't his fault. He didn't betray her.

"Shut up, I don't want to hear it anymore." – Hii shook her head –"Not only did you hide from me the fact that Sasuke had taken Bee-sama away, now you also have an affair with your student? You're kidding me right?"

Gaara was petrified for a moment. How could she know about Bee? He tried to keep calm again and looked at Hii's furious face. Gaara grabbed her by the shoulders but Hii had shrugged his hands off. Her eyes said nothing but sorrow. It seemed like Hii wanted to slap Gaara on the face. However, she only looked at him for a while before turning to the door. Gaara didn't want her to leave so he jumped forward to hold her arms with great force.

"Hii, can you just please calm down? You have to listen to me, you have to trust me. Don't overreact!" – Gaara pled

"Me? Trusting? Overreacting? Can't believe I'm getting this from a jerk who cheats on me." -Hii laughed madly.

"What's your problem? There's nothing between me and Matsuri, I swear on my life, nothing. And who told you about Killer Bee?"

"Kankurou told me everything. What else did you hide from me, Gaara? If you do, tell me right now."

"I'm sorry, Hii. I should have told you everything before. I was afraid that you'd be hurt so I don't want you to know this just yet. I'm trying to find a way to tell you but it's too late…"

"Where's the chakra, Gaara?"

Gaara didn't see it coming.

"I ask where's the chakra?"

"Matsuri's protecting it. And she's doing a good job."

"So he admits it", Hii thought in misery. She felt that there was nothing left to say to this man. Anger had shadowed her mind. Hii wiped away the tear on her cheek and quickly ran out of the room.

"HII, WAIT! Damn it, get away from me Matsuri."

Gaara angrily turned around to see Matsuri was holding his arm tightly. Her tearful eyes were begging him not to go.

"Gaara-sensei, you don't have to live a lie anymore. She has gone now, you're free from your burden."

"What are you talking about?"

"I know the only reason you have to marry her is because this village needs the barrier. You don't truly love her, I know that."

_No, no, that's just wrong._

"Johou told me everything. You did that so she can stay in Suna. Now you're free, sensei. You don't need her anymore… Even if she leaves, the shield stays. Don't you see how she reacted when she heard of Sasuke, she didn't see you, the only one she saw was Sasuke…"

Gaara couldn't waste any more time listening to Matsuri's ridiculous words. He finally understood now. Johou was such a jerk. He must have created the false illusion in Matsuri's head and as a result, the poor girl still kept her hopeless love for Gaara. The Kazekage dashed his way to Hii's room. He knocked the door open.

There was no sight of Hii. Her room was completely silent. On her bed there lie three golden brooches and the Kanshi ornament.

Hii had left Suna.


	17. Chapter 16

Chapter 16: Midnight storm

Hii was roaming through the desolate land of the desert. The wind was howling endlessly through her ear, creating a chain of whirring sound. She couldn't stop but to run hopelessly in the night, losing sight of her destination. She needed to save Bee, she knew that but she didn't know where to go. Her heart was aching so badly. Air, Hii needed air.

Hii abruptly stopped to inhale deeply. Her anger had faded away but the pain somehow remained. "What have I done?", she thought. Buried her head in her arms, Hii slowly dropped herself to the sandy surface. A storm was approaching and her destination was still vague. She should have asked Gaara where Bee was, she shouldn't have let the fury shadow her decision.

_Why didn't I listen to him?_

Come to think of it, Hii felt that she actually behaved like a child. Where the hell was her calm self when she needed it? Tears were on the corner of her eyes, waiting to roll down her ice cold cheek. Hii wiped them away, just like she was trying to wipe away her own sorrow. Once again, she had lost the dearest peole to her…Bee, Gaara…Her heart sobbed everytime she thought of her beloved Kazekage. She loved him so much. However, she couldn't get rid of the shocking image of him and Matsuri since it has rooted to the back of her head. How dare he betray her that easily? Hii felt that Gaara had shattered her trust in him, rent her dignity completely to pieces. More than that, Hii knew her pride wouldn't let her forgive Gaara…

_Forget him…I should keep moving._

But where to go? Hii, where to go?

_Home, I want to go home…Kumo…_

Hii carefully rose on her feet and observed everything around. Judging from the scenery, Hii noticed that she was quite a distance away from Suna. She couldn't hear of any weird noise except for the vigorous roar from the desert wind. That's a good thing though. No danger was around. Hii pulled her hands together, preparing for a jutsu. By doing so, she would be able to reach a speed of lightning in no time and maybe she could arrive at Kumo sooner. Just hope…

"Kazekanshi-sama, please wait!"

Startlingly, Hii turned around to find Johou was standing behind her back. It looked like this guy was out of breath since he could hardly stand on his own. The young jounin then looked at her again, with a pleading look just like Gaara. But it didn't matter to Hii anymore. She had decided to leave and no one could change that.

"Kazekanshi-sama, please come back to Suna. Please, I beg you!"

Hii acted as if she didn't hear anything from Johou and continued walking.

"If you don't then at least listen to what I have to say. It's from Kazekage- sama, it's his message."

Hii glared at Johou over her shoulder. Why would Gaara send Johou but not himself?

"Go home, Johou-san. I'm no longer your Kazekanshi nor have any business left with Suna. And I don't care about what Gaara has to say, think or whatsoever!"

"But this is important. You will regret it if you don't." – Johou pleaded.

Trying not to sigh in front of Johou, Hii took a few steps toward him. Even though Hii hated wasting her time as much as having a conversation with him, she was curious about Gaara's message. Johou was still looking at her cautiously. Suddenly, Hii didn't feel so well. The uneasy feeling continued to grow greater and greater. Hii stared at Johou speechlessly. But then, she started to understand…

"AIR SHIELD JUTSU!"

Hii quickly drew back to guard herself with with her barrier. She couldn't have mistaken, a minute ago, her chakra was drained. But who could do such a thing? Johou couldn't have done that, he didn't have the ability to do so.

"Reveal yourself!" – Hii commanded.

All of a sudden, a weird looking person or indeed a creature appeared from nowhere. He had a kind of orange-nish short hair and was wearing a headband of the Hidden Rain. His face was full of piercing and to Hii's horror, that man possessed the Rinegan. And judging from his clothes, there was no mistake that he belonged to…the Akatsuki!

The newcomer approached Hii with a ferocious laugh. To make the matter worse, Hii was petrified when she saw Johou bowed to him in a respectful manner, like a servant bowed to his master.

"You have come, my master. May I ask where the others are?"

"Patient, my young thing. They will be here soon." – the man replied.

Hearing their conversation was making Hii sick in the stomatch. She couldn't imagine Johou could have such a close relationship with the Akatsuki. Gaara was right after all. This guy couldn't be trusted. He was the bloody traitor.

"Johou-san, what's the meaning of this?" – Hii asked with a trembling voice.

"Ah yes, my dear Kazekanshi. You have met my master, the one who could give me everything I want, the one who could assure me with power. As you can see, I'm part of the Akatsuki now."

"Shut up! How could you do this? How could you join those criminals? Suna has treated you so well…"

"But NOT ENOUGH!" – Johou roared.

Hii held her tongue in mid sentence. She couldn't understand anymore. Could it be that Johou had gone completely insane?

"That cursed village gives me nothing. I should be the Kazekage, not that stupid little brat. Those god damned elders have denied my talent, ignored everything I've done for their village. Their fear of the Shukaku's power has blinded them all. Gaara of the desert…What's so great about him? That piece of trash doesn't desereve to be the kazekage. He's just a worthless scum!"

Johou's eyes widened in terror when he saw an electric blade inches away from his nose. Lucky for him, the Akatsuki member had blocked Hii's attack in the nick of time, saving his face from being slashed under her deadly blade. Hii teleported herself to a safe distance again, glaring at them in despite. She would never let anyone insult Gaara, not a chance. She wanted to kill both of them right now. However, Hii knew she needed to analyze the situation carefully before striking another attack. Johou himself was a good strategist. Moreover, he still had a chakra-sucking moron with him, which created more disadvantage for her.

"Playtime is over folks."

Hii was astonished by the stone cold voice echoing in the air. Soon enough, a gang of four people appeared before Johou and the strange guy. All of them seem to have the same hair color and piercing all over the face. The new guy with spiky hair slowly walked ahead, his hand was holding a scroll…

"Let us introduce ourselves, princess Imai Nori. We're PAIN."

The atmostphere seemed to become spookier when he finished his line. So they were the notorious Pain, who was rumoured to be the Akatsuki's leader. Hii stepped back a little, clenching her fists. These guys shouldn't be underestimated. This would be one hell of a battle…

"It's such an honor to have us coming to get you. Normally, we Akatuski only send two members to take care of a "client" but I guess you're special anyway…"

Hii's eyes were still fixed on the scroll. It looked suspicious.

"Thanks to our new man here, Johou, we are able to calculate your moves and stop you here. What a shame that we couldn't kill you with the bomb but…"

"So you did it. You sealed the exploding tag in the letter!"

"No, Hii. I did it. I was the one who sealed the bomb. I was the one who allowed my masters to attack the barrier. I was the one who talked Matsuri into separating you and Gaara. I did everything to lure you out of the village. In the end, it works." – Johou said with a cruel laugh.

"At first we intended to attack your village to take both you and the chakra but the barrier was too strong…"- the spiky hair continued –"But we don't have to worry about it any more."

The man held the scroll in front of Hii's face, revealing the familiar seal wrapped around it. The Shukaku's sign… He let out a fearsome laugh. Hii couldn't keep calm any more. With a battle cry, Hii attacked the man with her white chidori and at the same time tried to grab the scroll in his hand. She wouldn't allow them to steal the chakra that easy.

The spiky hair quickly dodged her attack and vanished. All 4 Akatsuki members were surrounding Hii, forming a square. "Let's find out their abilities first", Hii thought. However, Hii couldn't move. Someone had pinned her feet down to the ground, nullifying all her movements. Then, a man with long hair approached her. Hii patiently waited. That man placed his hand on her head, pressing it with great force. Suddenly, she understood…

"Tch, I can't suck her soul. The Mind barrier seems to be pretty strong. No wonder Itachi's sharingans failed against her."

"Game on!" – Hii smiled.

"What!"

While the long hair member was boasting about Itachi, Hii had secretly formed a shield trapping both of them. The man's jutsus were now useless. He was crying for help from his teammate but it was too late.

"LIGHTNING FIST!"

Hii's fist went straight through his lung, killed him instantly. She quickly withdrawed her hand and wielded a hand seal. The electric wings appeared on her back. Hii flew to the sky just in time to avoid being eaten by a giant centipede. She looked down and realized in horror that all sorts of vernomous creatures had appeared from nowhere. The battle was getting intense. Dealing with the creatures made Hii lose quite a great amount of chakra since she had to maintain the shield from time to time. A cobra vigorously threw itself at Hii but was knocked away by her electric shield. At this state, nothing could harm her but Hii was quite exhausting.

"You're NEXT, JOHOU!" – Hii yelled at him.

But before Hii could dash down to kill Johou, a mechanical arm had snatched her ball-like shield and tried to crush it. The force was too strong. To make the matter worse, Hii felt like her chakra was slowly drained away. If this continued, Hii wasn't sure whether she could hold on any longer.

"Thunder bomb" – Hii whispered.

An enormous halo of light followed by an ear-spliting noise had wiped away everything in its range. Hii dropped herself to the ground, trying to see through the dust. Three Akatsuki members were lying on the sand. Hii decided to finish them off.

"NINPOU: GIANT SPIDER WEB."

A huge spider web fell on the Akatsuki, glued them to the ground. The electric thorns on the web were piercing through their skin.

"WATER SASH OF DEATH!"

The combination was fatal. The strong smell of burnt meat filled the air, creating an annoying odour. The Akatsuki members were dead or at least it seemed so. Hii slowly turned her head toward Johou, who was looking terrifiedly at the dead bodies. She didn't have much chakra left. She must kill him, or else he would become a threat to Suna and Gaara. Suddenly, Hii was pushed away from Johou, like someone was dragging her by the collar. With a loud "thump", Hii hit the ground with a massive force. She clenched her teeth to suppress a painful groan. Although Hii still had her Air shield surrounding her, the impact was so great that it broke her left shoulder blade. Hii tried to sit up again but the pain was too much for her to take. The spiky hair was standing above her with a ruthless cold look. Hii had forgotten about his existence in the battle and now she had to pay a price. He was holding an iron stick in his hand. Hii tried to heal herself…He raised it above his head…

The man incessantly stabed Hii's barrier with the iron stick. Hii was really panicked this time. She couldn't heal herself and at the same time kept the shield. He stabed the shield chakra was running out. Suddenly the man flicked his hand. Both Hii and the shield were pushed far away and then pulled back with such high speed. Hii quitted healing her wound to focus the chakra on the barrier. If that sharp stick hit her, she would be done for. However, another plan popped up in her head.

"Muscles enhancing jutsu."

Hii closed her eyes.

"LARIAT!"

Faster than a lightning, Hii turned off her shield and engaged in hand-to-hand combat. The last Pain was flung to a distance, falling to the ground. Hii tried to stand up, breathing heavily because of both the pain and the exhaustion. She couldn't cut off his head since her Lariat wasn't perfect but at least she got what she wanted. Hii looked victoriously at the Shukaku's scroll in her fingers. This battle must end now. Realizing she couldn't stand to face another attack, Hii turned her back and planned to flee from the battlefield.

"NOT SO FAST!"

Within a second, Hii realized she was wrapped tightly with white cloths from neck to toe. The cloth was strangling her, making it harder for her to breathe. Hii opened her mouth, gasping for air. Her blood was dripping from her shoulder, wetting the white bandage. Hii could hear Johou's hysterical laugh from afar. She could hear the whirring sound of the wind. The sound was getting louder and louder. And there was sand in her eyes…

"SAND TSUNAMI!"

Hii was released from the cloths and dropped to the ground. Even though her vision was blurred, Hii didn't fail to recognize the familiar figure standing right in front of her eyes. The mighty Kazekage had arrived, together with his giant wall of sand. Hii could sense a fearsome aura coming from him as well. Gaara was controlling his sand to crush the last Pain and Johou. It seemed like they really had a hard time trying to dodge his enormous sand hands.

"GET HER OUT OF HERE!" – Gaara roared.

"Kankurou –niichan…"

Hii mumbled in her mouth before letting out a painful groan. Kankurou was trying to pull her out of the messy battlefield. Hii looked up to find Gaara was struggling to get near the last Pain while avoiding the white strings. His sand was pushed away everytime it came near the orange head.

"We must help him." – Hii said.

"But you're badly injured."

"These Akatuski members…they are strong. We must help Gaara."

"…"

"That spiky-hair man got a kind of push-pull jutsu. If you come too close he'll push you away or he can pull you close to him at his will."

"But your wound…"

"I'll be fine!"

Kankurou nodded and joined Gaara in the battle. The fight was getting more and more intensive. All Hii could see was sand, dust and chakra strings mixing together. Hii focus her last chakra on healing her broken bones. She had stopped bleeding now but the pain was still there. Suddenly, Pain and Johou appeared by her sides. Hii's eyes widened in horror…She didn't have the chakra…She couldn't make a shield instantly…

Blood dripped down her chest.

Hii felt like her heart has stopped beating. She fixed her eyes on Johou's body, which was pierced by a huge sand thorn. His dead corpse was hanging in the air, together with the last Pain. Gaara did it, he defeated them both. He turned his face towards Hii. There was a mix of relief, anxiety and anger in his eyes. Gaara slowly kneeled in front of Hii and wiped away the blood on her cheek. His hand was so warm.

"Guess we'll stop here."

Gaara immediately turned around when he heard a cold voice from behind. That were Pains, not one Pain but six. Gaara calmly faced them, shielding Hii from their sight.

"You fought well, all of you. But not enough…" – Pain said mockingly.

"If you dare touch my lady again, I swear I'll rip your head off." – Gaara said angrily.

"I'll spare her life for the time being but she'll be dead sooner or later. Don't you remember your past? You're dead once. There's nothing you can do to stop us."

"That's history. I've become much stronger now and I will protect Hii no matter what. You're messing with her means you're messing with ME."

"Ha, how scary but we have other business anyway. There's another tail to catch."

"Another tail… it means Bee is…" – Hii stuttered.

"Yes princess. He's gone. GONE HA HA HA HA HA."

"SHUT UP"

"By the way, stop messing with the Akatsuki name like that. We're not to blame for your clan's annihilation. Make it clear to people…"

"What do you mean? Orochimaru did it…" – Gaara mumbled.

But before he could make any more querries, the Akatsuki has disappeared in the air. Gaara stood motionless for a second, thinking back on what he had just heard. Suddenly, there was a sound of something bumping to the ground.

Hii had fainted.


	18. Chapter 17

Chapter 17: Homecoming

Gaara hurled through Suna's dusty roads with Kankurou by his side. The Kazekage's arms were firmly wrapped around Hii as if he was holding a treasure, never want to let go. She hadn't regained her consciousness yet, resulting from over-using her chakra in the fight. Looking at her pale face brought pain to Gaara's heart. He couldn't believe he nearly lost her just a while ago. His brother, Kankurou, glanced through the familiar spherical buildings and realized they would soon arrive at Suna's hospital. However, to his surprise, Gaara just simply walked pass it.

"Get the best medic ninjas to the main building. She is seriously injured." – Gaara ordered.

"Isn't it better if we take Hii-chan to the hospital? I mean if her wound is severe…" – Kankurou startled.

"No, I want to keep this incident as confidential as possible. It's no good to let the villagers know that the Akatsuki attacked her."

"I don't think that's a wise idea."

"And I don't want a chaos in my village. People WILL freak out, Kankurou, just like the time I was captured…"

Kankurou shut his mouth right afterward. Finally, they had arrived at Kazekage's office. Gaara gently put Hii down on the sofa and turned away immediately. At the same time, the door creaked and opened. Matsuri entered the room with a panic look, escorted closely by Temari.

"Oi, you're awake." – Kankurou smirked at his sister.

"What's going on? Hii-chan, thanks god you two brought her back, what's happened to her?" – Temari said and rushed to Hii's side.

"Yeah, she's fine except for a few broken bones."

Temari sighed and held the princess's hand. They didn't have to wait long before a medic squad came to examine her wound. Meanwhile, Gaara had decided to have a conversation with Matsuri, one last conversation.

"You disappointed me, Matsuri. Honestly, I don't know what to say…"

"Gaara-sensei, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry…I wasn't thinking clearly. I just thought if she wasn't here, I might have a chance with you. I always want to be with you, sensei…" – Matsuri sobbed.

"I GAVE you the chakra. I asked you to PROTECT it but what did you do? You let it fall into the hand of that disgusting traitor."

Matsuri seemed to have no clue.

"Johou, the very Johou. I told you not to trust him but you didn't listen to me. What would happen if Hii couldn't get the chakra back? What would happen if the Akatsuki got it again? THINK!"

"Calm down, Gaara. You'll wake Hii up" – Temari pleaded.

"What's going on here?"

A loud male voice suddenly filled the air, getting on Gaara's nerve. It didn't take him long to realize that all the councilors were standing at the door. Those freaking old men. Gaara didn't know how they discover this mess but now he was in trouble for sure.

"Explain yourself, Kazekage-sama. Where's Johou? Why did you leave the village at such time? Why is Kazekanshi-sama injured? You know it better than anyone that she must be kept alive. If anything happened to her, who knows what would happen to the shield."

Gaara could sense his blood was boiling from the inside and it wasn't easy for him trying to suppress his anger. After all those time, they still treated her as a "weapon", an ultimate barrier of the village rather than a human being. Even though they entrusted her with the title "Kazekanshi", Gaara felt that they merely showed any respect for her. Matsuri was looking at Gaara with fear on her face. Gaara couldn't stay silent for long.

"The Akatsuki attacked Hii when they knew that she was chasing them to get the chakra back." – Gaara lied.

"Akatsuki, they were here again? Chakra?"

"I wasn't honest to all of you. I don't have the chakra inside me; it's still sealed away in that scroll. And Johou stole it for the Akatsuki, he was with them from the beginning. He deceived us all and Hii…she happened to know his plan and tried to stop him."

"So you're saying Kazekanshi-sama hasn't inserted the chakra in your body? That's part of our deal. How could you let her keep the chakra. She's an outsider."

"Outsider? Now shut up!"

Everyone in the room was looking startlingly at Gaara. The councilors never expected their Kazekage to react inappropriately in front of their face. This reaction probably made them lost for words.

"I'm sick of the way you treat people like they are just tools. In the past, you used me as a weapon and now you use Hii as well? Don't get on my nerve saying it's for the SAKE of this village. YOU DON'T TREAT US LIKE HUMAN AT ALL."

"…"

"After all those years, I've tried to be a better person. I study hard, work hard, risk my life for Suna and that isn't enough to all of you? I'm strong, don't you see? I DON'T NEED THAT CHAKRA FLOWING IN MY BLOOD!" – Gaara stopped, gasping for air –"And don't you dare speak about Hii's barrier in front of my face. She's your Kazekanshi, so show some respect. The day you acknowledged her as your Kanshi, she was no longer a Kumo's ninja. She belongs to Suna and she's my family. If you don't trust her, it means that you don't trust me. As for Johou, I killed him."

The councilors gasped and exchanged a horrified look.

"I told you before that he shouldn't be trusted but you all neglected me. From now on, I hope you won't take my words for granted. Your support means a lot to me but sometimes you need to let me decide what's best for Suna and for me. If not, I have no choice but to replace the whole council, understand?"

"Our apology, Kazekage-sama."

With a respectful bow, an old man said while the others slowly retreated from the room. Gaara could see that the councilors felt offended by his words but he didn't care. The tension had disappeared little by little. Gaara felt like someone had lifted the burden in his heart. He finally let them know that they couldn't treat him like an outcast anymore. Remembered that he still have some business to finish, Gaara turned to face Matsuri, who was standing quietly in the corner. Her grieved eyes were pleading him for forgiveness. It was kind of awkward for the two of them. In fact, Gaara didn't have any idea of how to deal with Matsuri. He didn't hate her but he couldn't stay close to her any longer. She did try to get between him and the one he loved, and her plan actually worked. Gaara gave a sign for the medic ninjas to leave then he sat next to Hii. She was still breathing heavily in her sleep, which made Gaara worry even more.

"She'll be fine, sensei." – Matsuri spoke hesitantly –"She just exhausted herself, pushing her limit…I guess."

"Thank you, Matsuri." – Gaara suddenly said.

Matsuri opened her eyes widely in surprise.

"Thank you for having chose me as your mentor. Thank you for having faith in me. Thank you for…your love."

Gaara sighed and looked at Matsuri. There were tears on her cheeks.

"You're a nice girl and a courageous ninja. But I'm afraid that I don't feel the same way as you do. I'm in love with this lady lying right here. There's no one could replace her in my heart. I don't love you, Matsuri. I hope you will understand."

Matsuri constantly nodded her head like a desperate woman. She didn't want to hear such thing coming out of Gaara's mouth. It couldn't be more ruthless to her. She understood every word. Matsuri turned towards the door but before she could leave…

"And I think I should stop being your teacher." – Gaara said firmly.

Matsuri looked at Gaara through her tearful eyes…

"You don't need my guide anymore. I'm proud to see you've become a fully bloomed ninja as you are now. It's better for you to go your own way rather than just follow my lead…"

Gaara looked at the door again. Matsuri was no longer there.

* * *

><p>Gaara suddenly woke up to find himself resting his head on Hii's thigh. He must have been too tired to stay awake and dozed off quite a moment ago. Too much trouble to deal with in one night made him feel pretty exhausted. Hii was looking at him in such a strange way, was it him or her eyes were smiling?<p>

"Feel better?" – Hii asked.

"Hii, you're awake." – Gaara said, sitting up right away –"You have no idea how much I was worried about you. I can't imagine what would happen if I came a second late. I…I was…"

But before Gaara could finish his sentence, Hii had leant her head on his chest. Gaara could feel how terribly her forehead was burning. It must be the fever. Without any delay, the Kazekage tried to reach for the cool towel on the table but Hii had stopped him half way. Her trembling hands were holding his wrist gently. At this moment, Hii looked more vulnerable and feminine than ever and Gaara couldn't resist but to embrace her in his arms.

"Ouch!"

"I'm sorry. Does that still hurt?"

Hii nodded her head lightly. Looking at Gaara's face, Hii could tell that he was in pain.

"Why does it have to be this way?" – Gaara continued – "Do you want to kill yourself that much? The Akatsuki nearly got you there. I told you not to go outside the village because I know they will set a trap for you somewhere. And you just ran straight into it."

Hii was still observing Gaara with such an untroubled face, which Gaara found a little annoying.

"Hii…do you love me?" – Gaara asked, out of a sudden.

"If I didn't love you, I wouldn't be here." – Hii replied mildly.

"Because if you truly loved me… you wouldn't leave Suna that easily. You would listen to me at first place. You would trust me more than anyone else. And you wouldn't throw your engagement brooches away."

"Gaara-kun, please listen to me…"

Gaara stayed silent as he heard Hii clearing her throat.

"I'm not going to hide myself from the Akatsuki anymore. Even if I died confronting them, I wouldn't have any regret either because I know I'm not a coward. How long do you think you can hide me from them? Sooner or later, we will have to fight and end this thing once and for al. If they know we're afraid of them, we won't stand a chance winning this battle."

"You start to sound like Naruto."

"Is that a bad thing? He's an idiot but at least he is no coward. Look, I can not do this alone, Gaara-kun. I need you. Together we can take them down…Don't you see that we nearly succeeded in killing those Pains. In some ways, I figure out that they are no living things; they're only dead corpses…That's an advantage we could have if they messed with us again. We just need to find the main body...Hey, why are you smirking?...You know what, maybe we should drop this conversation right here before someone might actually get mad."

They were staring quietly at each other for a while. Gaara had to admit that Hii got some points right there but still, he didn't want to encourage her to have any risky revenge plan. Besides, there was something that caught his eyes more.

Being too carried away by her little speech, Hii didn't notice that the bandage used to secure her wound was slipping away from its original position, revealing the upper half of her breast. To make it worse, she didn't wear any top so the view seemed to be pretty nice to a fine young man like Gaara.

"DON'T LOOK!", Hii shouted and turned away. Her face blushed so much that she just hoped Gaara would think of it as a result of the fever. To her misery, Hii realized that both of her arms were quite useless since they were still under the effect of her injuries. She could hardly move them at all let alone tiding up her bandage. Gaara sat right behind Hii with a mischievous smile and started to dress the wound for her. Frankly, Hii was so embarrassed that she just wanted to vapour in the air. She couldn't imagine what would happen if Gaara saw her feminine bosom, bet she would bury herself together with her shame.

"You saw my thing once, didn't you? So it won't be a big deal if I see "those"." – Gaara picked up his teasing tone.

"Come on, Gaara – kun. I was trying to have a serious conversation here."

"Yeah right…" –Gaara rolled his eyes –"And Hii, I need to tell you about Matsuri…"

"No need to. I heard everything." – Hii smiled

"You did?"

"It wasn't very clear, the sound was like echoing through my poor ears, but it's enough for me to understand. I must apologize for my impulsion as well. I've been receiving lots of shocking news lately. I should have listened to you first, before making decision."

"Apology accepted."

Gaara said and blew a kiss on Hii's cheek. Her fever appeared to be less severe since her temperature had reduced quite a bit. He tied the final knot on the injury and put his arms around her waist. Gaara was glad that Hii finally came back to Suna unharmed and there was no more misunderstanding between them. However, there was one mystery that he really wanted to clear.

"I don't get it. Why did that Akatsuki member said they didn't have anything to do with your clan?" – Gaara mumbled hesitantly – "I mean if Orochimaru was the one who killed your family…"

"If I told you the real story, would you hate me?"

"And why should I do that, Hii?"

Hii slowly shrugged his hands off and came to stand by the window. She had choices now. One was to tell Gaara everything and prayed that he wouldn't look at her in a different way. Or to stay silent for the rest of her life, never let this vicious secret out of the bag. Neither way…

Gaara approached Hii with a tender smile, putting his coat over her shoulder.

Her conscience was telling her to make the right choice.

"We've promised each other that we would tell the truth no matter what and I feel that I shouldn't go back on my words…So here it goes…"

"I'm listening." – Gaara said quietly, stroking her hair.

"Would you hate me…if I were the murderer?"


	19. Chapter 18

Chapter 18: Sole survivor

I don't know in what way I should start this story. Since when? From where? It's all like a mess.

What?...Yeah, that might be a good start Gaara-kun, answering all your questions. Which one do you want to know? Why was I a murderer? Who is Yuuki? Or why isn't my stamina as good as before?

Maybe I should first tell you about the clan I was born into, the legendary Imai. It's the only clan that specialized in shielding jutsu, the only clan that possessed Air release at nature. According to our history, my ancestor signed a contract with Lord Suzaku, the supreme ruler in the Phoenix's land, in order to gain its protection and blessings to the people. In the end, the Phoenixes became the guardians of my clan. She also longed for the eternal barriers that the Phoenixes wielded during their battles; the strongest, the ultimate barrier in this entire human world…With that technique, no one could defeat her. However, the price was very high: every time one has to set up that shield, one fifth of their total amount of chakra will be lost. It's a bloodline limit jutsu that the "subject" can only use for five times. When the chakra runs out…the user will die. Suzaku didn't even tell her from the beginning that their shield was meant to protect others only. So the more damage the wielder takes, the stronger the shield becomes. In other words, the wielder is the sacrifice for the sake of others…And Gaara-kun, that's the kind of barrier I use to protect Suna…

Shh…please let me speak…

Only children from the main branch of my clan possessed such jutsu, as an "honor". Because of it, my clan had been carrying out a disastrous tradition…There's no tears in my eyes, Gaara-kun…I must let you know what actually happened to me, to my family…

_On a dark stormy day sixteen years ago…_

"_Chie-sama…just a little more. Please don't give up…"_

"_AGRHHHHHH…it hurts...ahhhhhh…" _

"_A little more…I see the head, warm water NOW!"_

_The atmosphere was so intense that no one could breathe. The medic ninja was wiping the sweats on her forehead, focusing on the little offspring slowly exiting from its mother's womb. It finally came out, small and feeble. The woman lying on the bed was panting from both the pain and exhaustion. Then, there was a sudden scream…_

"_Get ready, another one is coming…Chie-sama!"_

_The second baby was making its way outside, covering in blood and slime. The female ninja hastily wiped the buttery liquid away from the baby's face so that it could breathe. Everyone was waiting in silent…Finally, the babies started to cry, loud and clear…_

"_Congratulations, Chie-sama. You have twin girls. Here, look how lovely they are!"_

_After her difficult delivery, the woman looked at her two newborn babies and smiled blissfully. Her worn out face couldn't hide her delightful expression. If only her husband would be here with her now…_

"_Chie-sama, what about the name of these two princesses?"_

"_The older…Nori, yes, Nori. The child of the law, a great leader…" – the woman smiled –"The other…Yuuki, bravery…the name my husband always adores…"_

"_Nice job, Chie-sama, but now…" _

"_NO, just for a moment please. I want to hold them for a little longer…please…"_

"_We're sorry, Chie-sama…"_

_An old woman said then ordered the babies to be taken away for "the test". Chie lied in the bed with tears wetting her beautiful face. The rule was till the rule. Just a moment later, she knew she would lose one of her children. The Imai twins of the main branch were supposed to be separated since one of them held the Savior Blessings, the ability to use the barrier that had been protecting their territory for over a century. One of them would replace her dead sister…_

"_This is bad." – said the old woman in despair._

_Chie slowly lifted her head._

"_Both of them…no way…both of them stand the equal chance of becoming the "subject". They're supposed to be an offense-defense twin. What are we going to do? Such an omen, like the prophecy said…"_

"_Hmmm…we can't let one of these children grow up and destroy the clan. Fine, let's kill the younger one…"_

"_NO, I FORBID YOU!" – Chie roared._

_The other heads was turning towards her side…_

"_Let's raise them. When they grow a little older, one of them must have more potential than the others. When that time come, it's still not too late…" – Chie panted._

"_Fine…Nori and Yuuki, let's see who is the one."_

* * *

><p>"Sister, I brought you some flowers…"<p>

Yuuki said happily and threw the wild daisies on her sister's lap. I remembered looking at her dancing cheerfully in the grass field near our wooden cottage. She always had such an optimistic attitude and very innocent. If people said I was the moonlight then she would be the sunshine…And about her appearance…She was like a perfect reflection of me through the mirror, except for a tiny red mole at the very end of her right eye.

"I'm sad, Nori-nee…" – Yuuki frowned –"Starting from tomorrow, mom will make me go somewhere to train alone. I couldn't come to visit you either…"

"Mom must have said so to threaten you. Of course, she will let you go home once or twice…"

"No, she meant it seriously. Wish you could come with me…"

At that time, I wished I could say something more to comfort her but I just smiled at her instead. I thought she was so naïve to be tricked by the adults. I had never thought it would be the last time I saw her alive and kicking.

"Anyway, happy your 6th birthday, neechan!"

Yuuki said and then ran like a wind through the green grass field.

* * *

><p>"Happy 7th birthday, my daughter."<p>

My dad was smiling broadly at me and lifted me in the air. I don't remember exactly all his features but all I could say is that he was very tall and muscular. He got chocolate skin and…how to say… resembled my grandfather pretty much. The funny thing is I look nothing like him, but more like my mom. Guess the only thing I inherit from him is the Lightning based chakra. My dad loved me a lot. He taught me new jutsu, trained me in combat, even taught me how to read and write. The things that mom was supposed to do…Daddy did it all…He always said that he was proud of me.

"So, this is the little monster huh?"

An enormous man appeared in front of my eyes and scared me a little bit. He was built like a professional wrestler and I could sense his fearsome chakra from a mile away. He looked at me kind of challenging…You could guess who that is right, Gaara-kun?

"Who's the monster? YOU are the monster." – I talked back, sticking my tongue out of my mouth.

"There, there Nori. You should be respectful to your grandfather. He's the Raikage."

"This little one is tough eh…" – the Raikage laughed boisterously –"Here, happy birthday!"

"Woah, this katana is LONG…Dad, it's like 60 inches at least…"

I said excitedly and looked at my father. However, he was busy in another conversation with my grandpa under the Elder tree far from my place…I was curious…

"_How's your life, son? I can't help but wonder…"_

"_I'm fine. You should care about Kumo villagers rather than me."_

"_Whatever, son…ever since you left Kumo, I've never had a day without worrying. I shouldn't stay here long either. That woman doesn't like seeing me here at all."_

"_Father, Chie has never held any grudge against you. It is you who always doubt her. I don't even know why you hate her that much. And the Imai clan has no conspiracy to take over Kumo either. I've been spying on them, nothing suspicious yet…" – Daddy lowered his voice then looked at me –"Besides, today is Nori's birthday, can't you just be a normal grandfather…"_

The Raikage then stared at me, knitting his eyebrows. Suddenly, there was a warm smile on his austere face. He kneeled down on the damp ground and lifted his hands towards me…

"Come here, little monster. Come to grandpa…"

* * *

><p>"Why are you so happy, my daughter?"<p>

Mom asked as we were walking on a rocky hill, to a secret place where she promised to teach me new jutsu. Of course I was excited. It had been a while since mom and I had some time together. Being the head of the clan made her busy with other stuffs and hardly had any time for me. And to be honest, I had a funny feeling that mom didn't love me as much as before…She seemed a little distant…

"I'm happy, mom. I'm 8 years old now. I feel like I'm growing every day. I will definitely become the greatest ninja of all time. I will protect the whole clan!"

"Ha ha, my child is so funny…"

"So what will you teach me today, mom? I've already learnt some powerful Lightning jutsu with dad and I'm on my way to perfect the white Chidori, too. I could separate the Water and Lightning element in my chakra section, thanks to my Inner Shield…Ah, my mentor said that my shielding technique is outstanding. She said that my barrier is the most powerful among my classmates…"

"What about your Air based offensive techniques?"

"Well…I still have to work on that more…"

I could see my mom sighing in disappointment and I didn't understand why. I didn't know why she was so obsessed with me performing better the offensive technique. Weren't my shields good enough? Finally, we arrived at a stone cave, hiding behind the thick forest. It was dark as pitch inside and deadly cold. I didn't suspect anything, just walking obediently behind my mom. When we reached the centre of the cave, I saw a creepy altar and countless candles around. A ceremony was about to begin…

"My dear child, I'll give you the best birthday gift of all time. POWER."

The next thing I knew was two ninjas grabbing me by the arms.

I was tied down to the altar.

I was crying my eyes out.

"Seal the Nanabi inside her!" – Chie ordered.

"NOOOOOO…MOMMY, IT HURTS…MOMMMM…"

_The poor girl struggled violently under the strong pressure. Her arms and legs were bleeding because of the friction between her skin and the sharp surface of the rope. She was crying for help but only received her mom's cold expression in return. She could feel the evil chakra slowly took over her body, tearing her mind apart. That creature was so cruel, it threatened to eat her alive…_

"_ARGHHHHHH…ARGHHHHH…MAKE IT STOP…MAKE IT STOP…"_

"_Chie-sama, Nori-sama can't endure it anymore. Her heartbeat is decreasing…"_

_Chie still kept silent…Her child was screaming…_

_Suddenly the girl lay motionless on the stony altar._

"_Take the beast out. TAKE IT OUT." – shouted a sealing shinobi. _

"_I don't get it. How come her Mind barrier pushes the beast out? She's compatible…" – another startled._

_Blood was dripping from her mouth, nose and eyes. The black pupils of her eyes were nowhere to be seen, only the white parts remained. Her limbs become colder and colder. Blood continued to drop down on the ground…_

"_Let's go." _

"_But Nori-sama is…"_

"_You take care of her. What a worthless child." - Chie said and walked out of the scene._

* * *

><p>The fear of my mother grew greater in my heart. No one, except me, knew what truly happened that day since the others who were there had died abruptly and mysteriously. Another year had passed but the pain had never faded away. I'd been trying to avoid my mother at all cost. I ran away every time she called my name…I couldn't tell my dad either. I had a bad feeling that something might happen to him if I recklessly let a word out of my mouth. As a result, I withdrew into my cocoon, restraining from communication with other people…<p>

"Nori-sama, please don't go there!"

My nanny was rushing behind me with a serious face. She was fast enough to grab my shoulders, turning me the other way. I didn't give up. I had been suspicious of that shrine for years. I strongly felt that there was a voice constantly calling for me from there. My determination was burning in my head…Like a wild animal, I dashed away from nanny's arm…

"NORI-SAMA!"

There were two guards heading my way.

I knocked them out easily.

The building wasn't as simple as it looked. I had no difficulty destroying the genjutsu used to mislead the intruders. As I followed the stairs underground, the candles lit on their own. Then, a horrifying scene appeared in front of my eyes...

Lying on the wooden table was a withered body, weakened in physicality and mentality. There was no hair on the thing which was supposed to be a human head. Its face was full of wrinkles, making it harder for anyone to identify the position of the eyes. Eyeless, as I could say. I touch the dead pale skin and scared as it sent chill down my spine. The body was lifeless, only skin and bones. It didn't look like a human being anymore. I thought it was dead. However, its heart was still beating weakly.

"What is this?" – I asked in terror.

"Nori-sama…" – my nanny sobbed –"That is Yuuki-sama."

_A sorrowful scream was coming from the unfortunate young girl. Holding her head tightly, she ran away from the shrine. She was in great agony, like a hammer was banging on her head a thousand times. Tears blurred her vision… _

_**We have no choice…It was considered to be a bad omen since you two possess the same ability. We couldn't decide which one of you is better.**_

_**Yuuki-sama has been chosen to be the sacrifice…She must be weakened for the shield to be stronger…As the prophecy said…the younger one is the threat.**_

_**She must be eliminated.**_

_Her head was spinning as she ran through the darkness._

I arrived at my father's room, intending to tell him everything. But, he wasn't there alone…

"Chie, I can't believe you betray me. A traitor like you shouldn't be kept alive."

"This is for the greater good of the Imai's clan…Please stay out of this." – Mother was bursting to tears.

"I'm sick of this clan lunatic ambition. I'll take the girls and leave this freaking place. I will protect Kumo, don't you dare think that you could wipe away my village…"

"I'm sorry…honey…"

Then a dazzling flash blinded my eyes. My hands covered my mouth in horror as my mother stabbed my dad with her sharp blade. Blood was pouring out from his stomach. Mother let out a painful cry then continued to stab him again and again until he collapsed to the floor. My eyes were widened in panic. I wanted to yell so much but my fear had blocked away my voice. Mother might kill me as well…

But that wasn't the worst.

Mother laughed madly as seeing her husband lying on a pool of blood. She held her chest with great force, clenching her teeth. There was a mix of blood and tears on her face. She mumbled to herself.

"For this clan…" – she laughed insanely – "FOR THIS CURSING CLAN!"

She picked up her sword.

"I lost my husband…I lost Yuuki…"

She slowly placed it on her throat.

"I did the wrong thing to Nori…I'm not a mother…"

"MOM, NOOOOO…"

But it was too late. She'd already slashed herself.

I hurriedly darted towards my mom, placing her head on my trembling thigh. Her eyes were full of agony and regrets. I covered her wound with my tiny hands in hope of stopping the blood from flowing out. My effort was in vain. Her skin was getting colder and colder. Mom placed her bloodstained hand on my cheek…

"Happy…birthday…Nori-chan…"

Her eyes were smiling for the last time before…

"NO, STAY WITH ME, MOM…I DON'T HATE YOU. PLEASE COME BACK…" – I shouted in tears, pressing my ear against my mom's chest.

There was nothing.

_The girl stared blankly at the two dead bodies of her beloved parents. She was in such a dreaming state that her limbs seemed to disobey her. Tears were drying in the corner of her eyes…She miserably dragged herself out of the bloody room, walking unconsciously in the darkness. Her exhausting feet led her straight to her chamber…Her shaky hands automatically grabbed the long katana on the wooden shelf. Now, the little girl only had one goal in her mind: rescue her twin sister. Yuuki must be taken away from this rotten place._

_A cold wind pushed the windows open._

_It started to rain…_

_She stood stone like at her sister's presence. Yuuki was getting weaker and weaker as her time was about to come…The girl stare helplessly at the bony hands and felt the pain enlarging in her heart. Yuuki's breath became more scattered by seconds. There was nothing left for the girl to do. She could only watch her sister dying…hopelessly…_

"_There she is. Capture her!"_

_Footsteps were drawing near._

"_Nori-sama, don't even think of telling Kumo about the invasion plan. We know that you've found out."_

_Yuuki wasn't breathing anymore._

"_For the greater good…KILL HER!"_

_A horror scream tore the air apart. The girl's blade satisfied its bloodlust by sinking itself in the neck of the opponents. One by one, they all fell to her feet. Her eyes were glowing with murderous attempt. More people were coming her way. She coldly faced the army. She just couldn't think clearly any longer. She didn't know what she was about to do was the greatest sin of all…_

_Some people died because of injuries from the blade. Some was pierced by the invisible Air thorn. Some was suffocated till death. Some was burnt alive. And some was exploded from the inside… _

I walked away from the land that was once my home. I was all alone and isolated. No friends, no family…I couldn't come to the village of the Hidden Cloud either. I felt so guilty that I couldn't face my grandfather again. I couldn't protect my dad. I couldn't protect anyone. I was scared. My hands were trembling as I saw blood everywhere…

"Hey, I'm Orochimaru. Need a companion?"

I nodded.

"Here's your welcoming gift."

As he said, I felt a stinging pain on my right shoulder and passed out.

When I woke up, I'd already lost clue of who I was. By my side, there was a katana with only one word carved on it: **Hii**.


	20. Chapter 19

Chapter 19: Love birds.

The Hidden Leaf was completely crushed.

Gaara placed his arm on his forehead, thinking back on Pain's attack earlier. He was concerned with Konoha's devastating state but at the same time…felt relieved. Thanks to Hii's barrier, Suna could stay safe and sound. He couldn't face the thought of what would happen if the shield wasn't there, Suna might end up just like Konoha and it was painful even in imagination. Even though he had sent out warnings to other villages, the consequence was still fatal…Unbelievable…The Akatsuki had proven that they were no ordinary criminals anymore. They were something different…

Suddenly, he heard a sigh.

Gaara turned to his side and realized Hii was still in her sleep. She was hugging his left arm gently, leaning her cheek against his skin. It had been a few days since she told him her dreadful story of the Imai clan. Gaara could tell that it had broken her heart since she was forced to retell the awful thing she once did, to remember how her family was destroyed. No wonder why she had never mentioned her real birthday before. No wonder why she rejected her real name…He suddenly felt guilty of making her expose the darkest secret of her life. If he was not that curious, might be Hii could still be the same carefree and happy girl he used to know. But now, he only saw the sadness in her eyes. Gaara even caught Hii sitting alone on the terrace at night with sparkling tears on her cheeks, the very tears that she hurriedly wiped away when she noticed his presence. Because of that, Gaara insisted on having her sleep on the same bed with him to prevent her wandering in late hour, sobbing on her own past. Maybe she did that before but he didn't know…

_Do you think of me as a monster now, Gaara-kun? Even I despise myself… _

Gaara embraced Hii in his arms. How could he see her that way? She was just a victim.

_This will be our secret. Please tell no one else, especially my grandfather. The Raikage must not know the truth. Please promise me…No, swear to me._

He kindly fondled her back, holding her body closer. He would never let her down.

_What kind of ridiculous thing are you saying? Withdraw my shield? Gaara-kun, you are the Kazekage, so act like one…It's not about me, it's about Suna. Losing a little chakra doesn't matter. Since I'm the Kazekanshi, I must protect Suna, too… _

Gaara couldn't help but to appreciate Hii's determination to protect his village. Her courage even made him love her more. Looking at her sleeping face, Gaara felt a sensation crawling up his spine. She was breathing softly on his face. Her rosy lips were so inviting. He slowly pressed his lips against hers…She wouldn't know about this, would she?

However, Hii kissed him back.

Gaara couldn't stop but to go along with Hii on a passionate kiss. Her soft pair of lips blew his mind away. Gaara cleverly slipped his tongue inside Hii's mouth, coaxing hers to move with his. He just loved to take the lead. She was clinging on to him; her hands went under his crimson T-shirt, caressing him. No one wanted to break away from the snogging. They continued to kiss until they couldn't breathe anymore. Gaara then parted his lips away from Hii's. Her face was flushing like a cherry…

"I thought you were asleep." – Gaara said in surprise.

"If I were asleep, who knows what you would do to me. I have to protect myself though." – Hii smiled.

"But you _attack_ me first…" – Gaara said innocently.

"Hey hey, you _started_ it…"

They looked at each other for a while then bursted into laughter. It was good to see Hii enjoying herself after the crisis. Gaara pillowed her head on his upper arm while she was lying next to him, facing the ceiling. Gaara was surprised as he didn't feel sleepy at all. Hii was still looking at the ceiling, maybe she was thinking about something. Gaara wanted to break the quiet atmosphere…

"Damn that herbal tea." – Hii suddenly said.

"What?" – Gaara asked.

"The tea we drank earlier, it must be the cause of our insomnia."

Hii said then buried her head in Gaara's chest. Her hand was playing with his, tickling his palm. Gaara lifted he face up. Their fingers laced together as Gaara brushed his lips from her cheek to her ear. He could feel her chest was throbbing nervously. Gaara laid Hii on her back while positioned himself on top of her. He looked deeply in her shiny eyes.

"I will do anything to make you happy again. You don't have to worry about the past anymore, let it sink into the darkness. I won't see you in a different way so please don't let it trouble you…"

"I don't want Gaara-kun to be bothered by it, too. Sometimes, I wished I didn't recover my memory…"

"Well…in term of being a killer, between you and me…I don't know who is scarier…"

"Please, I don't want to talk about it…"

Gaara smiled gently at Hii then kissed her again. Her hands were holding his shoulders, pulling him close. Gaara felt feverish from the inside. His fingers were busy unbuttoning her pajama shirt. Hii realized what Gaara was doing and hurriedly held his hand, trying to stop him from embarrassing her. Despite her effort, Gaara's hand still moved through her buttons without any difficulty. She tried to hold her collar together but Gaara's kiss had melted away her determination. Gathering all her strength, Hii turned over, facing her back at Gaara. She could feel that he was mumbling something like "it's no use" to her ear before pulling her top away. His firm chest was leaning on her bare back. Hii was a little insecure. She wasn't ready for _this_.

_Need air, need air, need air, need air…_

"Hmmm, you injury seems to heal pretty fast." – Gaara mumbled.

"Yes…indeed…"

Hii hurriedly covered herself with a blanket when Gaara turned her around. His eyes were full of passion, which turned Hii on a great deal. Hii couldn't do anything when Gaara got in between her legs, taking her long pants off. Her hearts was beating vigorously in her chest. She felt like fainting right now. Hii closed her eyes as Gaara bent down to kiss her neck, licking down to her collar bone. Her hands were helplessly placed on his nape. One of his hands was on her thigh, stroking her bare skin. Her whole body was trembling under his.

Gaara couldn't take it anymore. He took off his T-shirt in front of Hii's startling eyes and threw it to his side. He could see that she was covering her face with her hands, embarrassing. Gaara smiled to himself…He lightly bit the tips of her pretty little fingers, dragging them out of her blushing face. Gaara wanted to pull the blanket away from Hii's body but she refused to let it go. His hand was going for her panties…

"Don't be shy, Hii…Don't you want to do this?" – Gaara asked delicately.

"I'm...I'm not quite…ready, Gaara –kun." – Hii said, placing her hands on his chest.

"I thought you enjoy what we're doing…"

"I mean…I mean I really want to give it to you but not now, Gaara-kun. I want to save it till our wedding. It will be your special gift…"

Gaara let out a laugh in relief. He hugged Hii again and ensured her that he didn't go any further than this. Hii was hugging him back dearly. She felt so graceful when Gaara respected her decision as well as her emotion. There was no words could describe how much she loved him. Gaara then dropped his T-shirt on Hii's head, grinning at her.

"Put this on, Hii. I really want to see you wearing my shirt in the morning."

"But you will catch a cold, Gaara-kun…"

"No problem. Lying next to you heats me up already."

Gaara said then pulled Hii down in his arms. He should really go to sleep right now if he didn't want to be worn out tomorrow. When the sun rose, the young Kazekage should be ready to set out for the Five Kage meeting. It would be one tiresome journey.

"Are you sure you don't want to go with me? You are the Kazekanshi after all." – Gaara whispered

"I will be there, Gaara-kun. But I must take care of something first…"

A moment later, Gaara had fallen asleep in her arms. His baby face was so adorable that Hii couldn't stop looking at him. Little by little, Hii entered a dreaming state. Voices kept popping out in her chaotic mind…She could see Samui standing behind the fog…Her memory started running wild…

_A word from the Raikage, Nori-sama…_

_IF you still consider him your grandfather, then hear me clear._

_You must avenge Bee-sama._

_YOU MUST KILL THAT GUY._


	21. Chapter 20

Chapter 20: Farewell, my friend.

The sun had long rose from the horizon.

The wind couldn't stop Hii's footsteps as she rampaged through the Northern forest. Baki'd better be right about the information he told her or else Hii wouldn't forgive him. Hii bit her lips as she jumped up to a tree, hiding herself among the canopies. As located, in this very forest, an old friend of her was wandering nearby. She must not let this opportunity slip away. She must confront him…Sasuke…

A group of people was walking ahead.

Hii hurriedly dashed forward to take a better look. Her eyes glowed with delight as she saw the familiar spiky hairstyle, the same walking posture. The man in the middle…no doubt it was Sasuke. Hii silently raced ahead of them. Now, she was standing on a tree branch, looking down on her old companion. There was a mixed feeling in her head. Hii half wanted to tear him apart as he had captured Bee-sama while the other half persuaded her to raise a heart to heart conversation. He used to be her best friend. She couldn't just kill him off, could she? Before she could decide, Sasuke had caught her eyes from below.

"Long time no see, Sasuke-kun!" – Hii said with a broad smile.

Sasuke widened his eyes, astonishing.

"Do you remember me?" – Hii continued in a friendly manner.

"What is this? I can't sense her chakra at all." – a red-headed girl said –"Hey, who's that bitch talking to you, Sasuke?"

"You have a really…nice…teammate, Sasuke-kun…"

Hii smirked and flicked her hand.

The red-haired girl was flung to a distance, hitting her back hard against a tree. The clash was so strong that blood exited from her mouth. The girl then dropped to the ground, lying flat on her face.

"KARIN."

The other guys hastily came to aid her while Sasuke gave Hii an irritated look. Hii didn't mind though, she had used to Sasuke's grumpy mood every day when they were still in Konoha. However, his attitude right now somehow hurt her a little bit. This wasn't the Sasuke that she knew. The coldness in his eyes was alien to her.

In a flash, Sasuke took out his sword and engaged in combat with Hii. She dodged his blade with a speed of light then ducked to the solid ground. As she stood there, Hii calmly performed a shielding technique to trap them inside. Sasuke's comrades seemed to be panic since they were separated from their "leader". The Uchiha narrowed his eyes at Hii, spreading out a kind of murderous aura.

"Chill out, Sasuke-kun. I come here to talk, not to fight." – Hii grinned at him –"And don't try to carry out any jutsu. They're useless in my shield."

"What do you want?" – Sasuke said grumpily.

"I want to know what had happened to you, to the Sasuke I knew."

"Hah, now you care about me? If you do then why didn't you go after me when I left for Orochimaru? Why didn't you persuade me to stay in Konoha? Where were you when I needed you? Hah hah… HA HA HA HA…I got it." – Sasuke laughed evilly –"Because of Gaara, right? You chose Gaara over me. You willingly went to Suna just to help him and left me alone…"

"But you have friends..." – Hii said calmly.

"Friends? Who? Those useless genins of the Hidden Leaf? I don't think they reach the level to become my friends. They only drag me down. But you…"

"What make me any different?"

"You should have become an avenger like me. I thought we could go on the same path together. I thought you could feel my pain but in the end, you were just as ignorant as them. You family was KILLED, right? Don't you feel anything? I heard you got your memory back so at least you should be able to feel something, shouldn't you? Are you heartless?"

Hii felt like someone was squeezing her heart when Sasuke mentioned her family's assassination. That guy's words were sure hurtful. However, it seemed like Orochimaru didn't tell him the truth.

"You don't even keep your promise. You promised that you would support me no matter what. You promised that we could be friends forever…Never mind, I got my business all done. I defeated Orochimaru, happy? I even killed Itachi…"

"Then come back to Konoha."

Sasuke was looking at her doubtfully.

"You got your revenge, Sasuke-kun. There was no reason for you to hang out with the Akatsuki losers anymore. Besides, that cloak suits Itachi better than you…" – Hii said indifferently.

As Hii expected, Sasuke dashed to her place like a bullet, full of force and fierce. She only had a tiny bit of time to move before his blade touched her flesh. Sasuke continued to approach her with a monstrous speed and his sword was no different from a snake. Its movement was flexible and deadly dangerous. Hii quickly avoided the blade and at the same time tried to knock it out of his hand. Even though she had nullified his ability to use other techniques, his taijutsu and kenjutsu were quite annoying. Hii secretly attached her chakra strings on Sasuke's arms whenever she had a chance. Her swift moves got on Sasuke's nerves because she dodged his attack every time. He started to lose his cool and messed up with his strategy. Finally, her counterattack worked. Hii successfully disarmed Sasuke and punched him in the face with her bare hand. He was flying for a distance before hitting an "invisible" wall. Wiping a drain of blood away from his mouth, Sasuke stood up and smirked at the blue electric rays glowing from Hii's fingers.

"I don't fight fair, Sasuke. We're shinobi after all."

Sasuke's face showed nothing, nothing but a malicious smile.

"Tell me. Why don't you go back to Konoha?"

"Because you're not there."

Hii gave him a questioning look.

"If you went after me, things might be different…To me, you've been more than just a friend…"

Hii was startled…For a moment…

"But now you mean NOTHING to me!" – Sasuke suddenly appeared by her side –"You're just an unpleasant obstacle that I wish to get rid of. You will die…" – he grabbed her neck –"After that, I will kill Gaara, I will gouge his heart out and make him die the most painful way. I will make him suffer. I will enjoy his agony when seeing your corpse with his own eyes."

Hii bit her lip as Sasuke strangled her.

"Then I will kill the Raikage just like what I did to the Hachibi…"

Sasuke's eyes widened as his whole body was tied down by countless dazzling electric wires. Hii moderately walked towards him from behind, her facial expression was icy cold. No matter how much it hurt to accept the fact that Sasuke had changed, Hii realized that he was indeed a threat to her beloved people. Hii narrowed her eyes…The wire was getting tighter…Sasuke's blood started shedding from his pale skin. She could cut Sasuke into pieces immediately but then Hii realized she couldn't do it. She couldn't kill Sasuke that easily…

"You don't have the gut to kill me…" - Sasuke laughed – "I know you, Hii. You could have done that if you wanted to."

A sharp cut appeared on Sasuke's cheek.

"I will destroy Konoha."

Another appeared on his wrist.

"I will take the life of those you love. You'll have to pay for leaving me behind."

Hii had made up her mind. Raising her sword high, she was about to stab Sasuke when something spongy suddenly popped out from her limbs. Hii snapped her fingers. The disgusting thing was removed from her body but it was enough to distract her from maintaining the shield. By the time the Air barrier had disappeared, Hii saw something different in Sasuke's eyes. It was not his Sharingans anymore…In fact they were…

"Zetsu! You came!" – the other guys yelled.

"Let's go now, Sasuke." – the freak named Zetsu said –"And you three, you aren't her opponent so don't fight. It's not fun to mess with an Imai."

"What? She's our wanted Imai?" – the red-haired girl squeaked.

Hii only had a few seconds to get away from Sasuke as she sensed some evil chakra enlarging with such fast pace. It was unpleasantly cold and made her sick in the stomach. Hii turned her head and realized the technique used by Sasuke was no other than…

"SUSANO'O…How about that, Hii?"

Sasuke laughed madly to her face, getting ready to strike another attack. The others were looking at them in terror, the red-haired girl was begging Sasuke to stop and even "Zetsu" tried to interfere but he was knocked away by his dark shield. Hii observed Sasuke with caution…If he could go as far as to form a Susano'o, and then there would be no chance that he wouldn't use…

"AMATERASU!"

The powerful flames of darkness flew at Hii like an aggressive swamp of bees. Hii didn't have time to think now. It was either a kill or be killed situation. And much to what she preferred, Hii wanted to survive.

Sasuke was glaring at Hii in anger as he saw her blocking away his flames easily. He was yelling at Hii furiously as she hid herself behind the silver smoke. As the smoke faded away, Hii slowly showed herself again. Much to Sasuke's surprise, he noticed that Hii wasn't the same anymore. She had transformed into something really strange. He stared cautiously at the claws growing out from her hands. Her hair was disheveled and had a much greater length than before, flowing down to her ankles. Her eyes were like those of a hawk with shiny white and golden rings surrounding them. Her pupils were no longer black but turned into a mixture of pure red and light orange, glowing brilliantly like two gem stones in daylight. And her face…it didn't carry any of her features. In fact, it looked pretty extraordinary and demon-like.

"SASUKE, DON'T FIGHT. HER CHAKRA IS WEIRD!" – Karin shouted.

"Idiot Sasuke." – Zetsu mumbled.

Sasuke insanely threw the undying flames at Hii but strangely, they were all sucked into the transparent "holes" in the air. Hii smirked at him then formed a hand seal which he had never seen before. A moment later, Sasuke heard a high pitched whistle constantly entering his ears, deafening him. He felt that his Susano'o seemed to be cracking from the outside. He drew back and guarded himself with a stronger shield but Hii had already come to his side. Sasuke started to panic as Hii was drilling his shield with a strong whirling gust of wind. She was looking at him sorrowfully. Memories of their previous friendship kept pouring in her mind.

"I DON'T WANT TO SEE YOU THIS WAY, SASUKE." – Hii shouted in a hoarse voice that was not her own –"YOU ARE MY FRIEND! MY FRIEND!"

"No, you are damn not. You've never thought about me. You broke our promise. You only have HIM. I HATE YOU!" – Sasuke said bitterly.

"Is that how you feel?"

"Yes…I WANT YOU DEAD. I WILL CRUSH YOU!"

"Fine then…I'll have no choice but to kill you…though in my heart, you've always been the friend I adore."

Hii deliberately pushed her chakra a little stronger. A short crack appeared…then a longer one…then a deeper one…Sasuke's shield was shattered to pieces and he was knocked down to the ground. Hii was inches away from thrusting her air blade through his head when that Zetsu appeared again, carrying Sasuke with him and escaped under the earthy surface. As they emerged from the ground, Hii could see Sasuke was already badly injured with blood covering his body.

"Let's go."

Zetsu commanded then all of them vanished behind a smoke. For a moment, Hii was sure that Sasuke was looking at her again. "I hate you", he mumbled. Those eyes…those cruel eyes…


	22. Chapter 21

Chapter 21: Bonds

When Hii arrived at the meeting, everything seemed to be settled. Judging from the scattering debris, a savage battle must have occurred not long ago. The girl hurled through the corridor leading to the conference room, hoping to rejoin her Kazekage and his siblings. Her treads were echoing through the stony walls, creating such funny sounds.

"YOU'RE LATE!"

Hii rolled back her eyes in horror as an enormous fist was thrown at her, which was successfully blocked thanks to Hii's instant reaction. Behind the dust, she could see the Raikage's frowning face of displeasure. Her grandfather seemed to be in a bad mood or else he wouldn't be this brutal. He hadn't changed at all, especially the furious look on his face. Hii simply gave him a vague smile and proceeded inside the chamber where the other Kages were gathering, except for Gaara.

"Where the heck were you? The meeting is over and now you show your face? You really have some gut coming late to this important event…"

"I was after Uchiha Sasuke, okay? Here Shee…" – Hiis said then handed him her katana –"Check it."

"Raikage-sama, it is Sasuke's blood." – Shee replied.

The Raikage gave Hii another unpleasant look. The other Kages were following their conversation attentively. Obviously, Raikage was the only one who made the tension in this room rise so high.

"No wonder that brat was already worn out when he reached here." – Tsuchikage spoke –"Still, we couldn't kill him. He's strong."

"Strong? That's because Madara saved his ass, you old rag…"

"Neither way, he made you lose an arm…"

While Raikage and Tsuchikage were arguing, Darui had come and whispered to Hii the whole story happened at the meeting. Hii was over cloud nine to know that her Bee-sama was still alive but she couldn't avoid the anger to hear that Sasuke had cut her grandfather's arm. Moreover, the war's declaration also troubled her. The time for Akatsuki had come and the Five Nations had better prepare for battles. Hii was extremely worried about the Shukaku chakra hidden in Suna village. The Akatsuki would aim for Suna with full force when they had already gathered other tailed beasts. No…they would aim for Bee and Naruto as well. Hii anxiously bit her nails. The shinobi force couldn't afford to lose them.

"Sorry to interrupt but…we haven't been introduced, young lady." – Mifune spoke gently.

"Ah…right. I am the Kazekanshi of Suna…"

Raikage looked as if he wanted to punch her again.

"Also granddaughter of the Raikage, Imai Nori." – Hii said firmly.

A silent atmosphere invaded the room. The other Kages were all staring at her without blinking their eyes. Hii felt a little annoyed by the attention they were giving her at this moment. She didn't need that kind of popularity.

"Such an adorable maiden." – Mizukage said with a graceful smile –"A powerful kunoichi, born into a powerful clan and with such pretty face…You know, your shielding techniques will benefit us greatly in this war…Well, the Kazekage might be young but he has such a good eye for women."

"Thank you for your compliment."

Gaara's warm voice filled Hii with comfort once again. He was heading to the room with his coolness, as expected from a Kage. Both Temari and Kankurou were smiling broadly at her though they failed to hide the tiredness on their face.

"I've reported the situation to the shinobi of Konoha. Naruto didn't take the news as easy as we thought. Anyway…" – Gaara said, avoiding Raikage's look –"I don't think we can leave now since there's a heavy snowstorm, so I suggest we all wait until it dies down then head back home."

The other Kages nodded, except for Raikage. He was still carrying the sullen face like before.

"Hii, should we have a private talk?"

Gaara said then pulled Hii to another room. Her mouth dropped as she was unexpectedly dragged to another place. She couldn't guess what Gaara wanted to talk about.

"It's hard for you to face him, right? To face Sasuke…"

Hii looked at Gaara astonishedly. How could he know about their battle?

"Baki told me as well but I think I should let you handle that…"

Gaara was surprised as Hii raced towards and hugged him. Unlike before, he didn't hold her in return.

"I'm sorry, Gaara-kun. I've failed. I've failed to kill him. I thought I could do it but I was too emotionally fragile that I went easy on him. If I acted differently, he wouldn't come here and mess with the meeting. Please, please forgive me…"

"I thought you couldn't do it also. I just want you to confront him and decide on your own. How are your feelings towards him now?"

Hii suddenly became quiet and let go of Gaara. She didn't know why but her mind wouldn't let her answer. Gaara looked at her for a while then smiled tolerantly.

"Do you like Sasuke?"

"No, not at all. I…I don't like him." – Hii stuttered.

"You can tell me the truth." – Gaara replied warmly.

Hii remained silent.

"Honestly, I'm jealous of that guy." – Gaara said, scratching his head.

"You are?"

"Yes, I am…When we were in Konoha, I didn't like him hanging around you very much. I know he was just your friend but it's still hard for me to take. I know you liked Sasuke at that time and he seemed to have some feelings for you, too. Guess that's one reason which made me want to kill him. I still remember how angry you were because I secretly helped Konoha retrieve him without you…I was afraid that you'd go with him and left me…so…I was being selfish."

"I like him as a friend. That's all, Gaara-kun…"

"Still, I don't like it when you felt sad about him. It just makes me feel so uncomfortable and irritated. It's killing me to know that guy still has a space in your heart…"

"Next time I will show him no mercy."

Hii said with determination and looked into Gaara's eyes. He seemed to be startled by her sudden shift of thought. Hii took Gaara's hands in hers, held them tightly.

"Listen, Gaara-kun. What we have now is love. What I had with Sasuke was merely friendship. And because he threatened to harm you, there's no reason for me to be merciful with him anymore. Protecting you is my priority, Gaara-kun. I will kill him if he dares to touch you because I'm your Kazekanshi…"

"And even if your family member was murdered, you wouldn't give a damn, right?"

Raikage's raucous voice made the young couple jump out of their skin. He was looking at Hii defiantly, which scared her a little. His look…he was like staring to the very deep corner of her soul. Gaara quickly advanced before Hii, shielding her from the Raikage's presence. Hii didn't have the courage to face her grandfather. After everything she did, her sinful past, her leaving him to Suna without saying goodbye, Hii wasn't sure if she still had the right to call him her grandfather…

"If I and Kazekage were in danger, who would you save, Nori? I don't want to hear that you'd rush to that brat and ignore this old man."

"Don't be childish, no one has to die…"

"THIS IS WAR, ANYTHING COULD HAPPEN…" – The Raikage roared –"CRUEL SITUATIONS HAPPEN ALL THE TIME. I WANT TO HEAR YOUR CHOICE. DO YOU TREASURE YOUR FAMILY OR AN OUTSIDER?"

"Then I will save you both. I said no one would have to die…" – Hii muttered under her breath.

"BOTH…I MEAN NOTHING TO YOU, RIGHT? KUMO VILLAGE MEANS NOTHING TO YOU, RIGHT? ANSWER ME!"

"RAIKAGE, THAT'S ENOUGH." – Gaara shouted back.

The two men were looking at each other intensely. Hii could see the veins popped out of her grandfather's face and so did Gaara. The Raikage tightened his fists then shortened the distance between him and Gaara. Hii hurriedly pulled Gaara back, she didn't want them to have a fight here.

"And who are you to interfere with our family's issue. Step aside, Kazekage…"

"Hii truly loves you, Raikage. She truly does… And she loves Kumo as well. If she couldn't serve Kumo and be your successor, she must have a proper reason for that. As a grandfather, you should have more trust in your grandchild. Besides, I'm her future husband so I guess I can interfere…"

"What husband? I have NEVER approved your marriage. You're the Kazekage but you lacks so much manner that you can't properly ask for permission from me."

Gaara cautiously took a few steps ahead. The Raikage seemed to be taken aback as he saw Gaara bowing to him.

"Right now I'm asking you, not as a Kage, but as a man who is deeply in love with your granddaughter. I want to marry her, I want to be her companion for the rest of my life. I couldn't find another woman who is just as fine as your grandchild. It's my fault for not considering your permission before since we did have some misunderstanding…But now, please approve our marriage! I love Hii, Raikage!"

"Grandpa, please…" – Hii said and bowed with Gaara.

"You brats…" – Raikage sighed –"Kazekage, are you sure that you truthfully love Nori? You two are still so young and your emotions could change. Don't make hasty decision…"

"I love Hii and I know she feels the same. We're certain about it."

Hii then felt a hand firmly placed on her shoulder. She looked up to see her grandfather looking at her softly, which comforted her a little bit. The Raikage then hold her shoulders tighter, seemed like he had something to say.

"I know my grandchild, I'm sure she would never act without reason…Before I didn't want you to leave because you're precious to me. I thought if I made you my successor, the gap between us could disappear. You are the only bond that connects me and my son, your father…" – Raikage said emotionally –"The way you disobey my order reminds me so much of him. He was a wonderful man and the only mistake he made is marrying that woman but never mind…Thanks to that, I have this stubborn, impulsive, courageous young girl."

"She's just like you…how genetic…" – Gaara mumbled.

"Kazekage…" – Raikage abruptly turned to Gaara –"Can you promise me that you will take good care of Nori? She has been through too many traumas and she needs someone who is always there for her. I can't be that person, so…can you? Only if you promised me that, I would feel secure enough to leave her to you."

Gaara nodded with certainty.

"Then, I have no objection. Make sure you tell me in advance about the official wedding ceremony. I want to plan it."

The Raikage turned his back, ready to leave the room. Hii was looking at him dearly…She was touched by those honest words coming from the bottom of his heart. Raikage looked back at Gaara once again, this time with a friendly smile.

"See you soon…my grandson."


	23. Chapter 22

Chapter 22: Decision.

_Fate is something we could never control._

_Fate brought us together._

_Fate tore us apart._

_And Fate will lead you back to me._

"Hii, are you alright?"

Gaara's impatient voice snapped Hii out of her delusion. It took Hii a while to pull herself together and kept her head in the assembly. The other Kages was looking at her inquisitively as if she had carried out an improper deed. Gaara softly pulled her sleeve, making sure that she was paying enough attention.

"Pardon me?" – Hii said, being a little embarrassed.

"Please excuse her, she hasn't been feeling well recently." – Gaara quickly defended Hii.

Mizukage smiled sympathetically then continued her speech. Her beautiful soft voice soon slipped through Hii's mind when the strange song started echoing in her head again. Ever since Hii chose to use that "power", that soothing voice appeared to haunt her. It sounded like a warning, a premonition that she couldn't ignore. Hii found it hard to stay focus in the meeting since the voice was popping up from nowhere.

"We want to appoint you as the leader of our shielding squad. I'm sure you won't have any trouble with it right, Kazekanshi-sama?"

"Of course not, Mizukage-sama."

"Also, you should begin setting up your Imai's barriers around headquarter and our Daimyos' place. We should be well-prepared before going to battle."

"That won't be a problem."

"I object!" – Gaara suddenly said.

Everyone was looking at him in astonishment. Gaara stared at Hii with seriousness in his sparkling blue eyes. He would not let Hii shorten her lifespan in this critical time. Nobody but him knew the real consequence if she overdid herself with that jutsu. The Raikage was observing him closely. Through the look on his face, Gaara could tell that he desired to know more.

"We only need a regular one but not that kind of shied. It's a bloodline limit. If Hii exceeds the limit of using it five times then she will die." – Gaara said calmly.

Hii secretly pinched Gaara's elbow, which made him shut up immediately. But it was already too late. The other Kages started to discuss loudly and quarreled about how they should use her power. Raikage looked extremely worried and continuously declined Tsuchikage's idea of sending her to the battlefront. Five-timed limit seemed to be a big deal for people…and for her as well.

"How many times have you performed that technique?" – Raikage asked.

"Only once…" – Hii said casually –"But hey, it's nothing to make a fuss about. Even if I perform it 3 times, I still have 2/5 of my chakra left, which means I can still fight in the battlefield if you need backup. My chakra's amount is huge so don't worry."

Gaara was looking at her doubtfully. Hii gave him a reluctant smile then turned away. Maybe she was exaggerating a little bit out there, enough for Gaara to know that was a big fat lie…

"What about the turtle island where the jinjuurikis are staying? We should need a shield preventing them from breaking out, too. Can you do that, young Kazekanshi?" – Tsuchikage said.

"Nope, Tsuchikage-sama. I'll let my teammates do it since I don't want to waste more chakra."

"But we need to make sure…"

"I trust them." –Hii said steadily, looking directly at Tsuchikage.

"Then it's decided. Nori, you will be in charge completely of our defense. We must do everything possible to win this war. Now, dismiss!"

After the Raikage's announcement, people started to leave for preparation. Gaara slightly shook his head at Hii then left the room. Once again they didn't see eye to eye with each other. He was being overprotective while she was so stubborn. Hii relaxed her arms, trying to free herself from the unknown voice singing in her head. How creepy…

It stopped for a while.

Hii was now sitting alone, thinking carefully about her decision. She couldn't do differently since the situation required her ability to be used at its best. She didn't have any regrets although the idea of being separated from Gaara seemed frightening to her. What if she had to destroy herself to make the shield stay stronger? What if she had to die and leave him alone? Those were the only moments when Hii was actually afraid of Death.

_Your soul belongs to me._

_Your flesh belongs to me._

Hii miserably covered her head with her hands. This voice just couldn't give her a break for long. It was obsessed with her, torturing her…

_**What the hell do you want me to do, Suzaku? It's not like I'm running away.**_

_You called for me once and you shall call for me again. You're destined to serve me._

_**I know, I know but you don't have to enter my mind like this…**_

_Your fear suppresses me. Go home, and face your deepest fear. Defeat it…Only then can you summon me successfully. I really hate to miss a good fight._

_**Don't you dare go against our contract! You must lend me your power at my command.**_

_Yes, but only after you eliminate that fear in your heart._

Hii closed her eyes tightly and sighed. This time, she couldn't just rely on her Lightning based techniques to fight against the enemy. As much as she wanted to lie to herself, Hii knew better than anyone that she needed Suzaku's power to win this war. It offered her strength but asked for her soul in return. Since she decided to borrow the phoenix's chakra in Sasuke's fight, she had automatically entered the trading contract. By the time she unfortunately left this world, her soul would be sealed in their holly land for eternity. Reincarnation would be impossible for her.

"Hii, you've been acting really weird."

Gaara entered the room with a concerned expression on his face. He sat down on the chair next to her, stroking her cheek with great dedication. Hii tried to put a smile on her lips but failed. Gaara continued asking her the same questions, insisting on her telling him the truth. She gathered her courage and told Gaara everything, from the Suzaku's voice to her troubling thoughts. In the worse scenario, she would have to wound herself. Gaara just listened to her story quietly, facing down the floor. There was nothing much he could do, it was war and they all had their own duties. Gaara looked at Hii lacing her fingers nervously. He also had something to tell Hii, something he should have told her days ago.

"I will make sure that no enemy stays alive in this war. That's why I need to be strong. That's why I have inserted Shukaku's chakra inside me, just to enhance my ability…"

"No, you didn't. You don't have to do that, Gaara-kun" – Hii said with a mouth-drop.

"It's time for me to overcome my stupid fear of that chakra. Like you, I'm willing to do anything for this army. I will protect my village, my friend and my love. If it could make me stronger then I don't have any reasons to refuse it. You too, Hii…You're free to decide on your own but please promise me, you will be alive and wait for me to come back."

"You must promise me the same, Gaara-kun. You must not die."

"For you, I will definitely survive."

Gaara said firmly then kissed Hii tenderly on her lips. Finally, they could share a kiss under the exotic sunset of Kumo village. The weather here was splendidly comfortable, neither too sunny nor too rainy. Suddenly, a light drizzle was coming from the sky, spraying its water drops on the glass windows. A small snow-white butterfly gracefully glided through the door, landed on her shoulder. As Gaara broke away from Hii, he hastily drove the butterfly away. To him, it brought nothing but misfortune.

"You're so mean!" – Hii said sulkily, fixing her eyes on the little creature.

Gaara smirked and rested his head on his folding arms on the table. He just wanted to spend some private time with Hii before the battle began. Honestly, he was a little afraid as well. Who knew if he could keep his promise with her or not…

"Gaara-kun, do you want to go somewhere? Just the two of us." – Hii asked, out of the blue.

"Yeah. You have any idea?"

"Let's go to my previous home. I will get rid of my fear. I have to face the past again to be stronger. So…please escort me home."

Gaara nodded then pulled her in his arms. He would go everywhere she wanted him to go. Nevertheless, this was such a good opportunity for him to get to know her better.

Then, it was decided.

Tomorrow, they would travel there…To the land of the Imai.


	24. Chapter 23

Chapter 23: Desire

Gaara was sleeping like a log when he felt someone tickling him by the nose. It was so annoying. He wanted to snap that person for having disturbed him from the nice dream he had about Hii. They were doing something really pleasant…There it went again, the tickling just wouldn't stop. Gaara grumpily threw his pillow randomly in the air and jumped out of bed. As he looked back, he realized the pillow had landed on the head of his fiancée.

"You're dangerous even in your sleep." – Hii laughed cheerfully.

"What're you doing? It's still early." – Gaara said half-asleep, rubbing his eyes.

"Since when did you become a sleepworm? Let's go before grandpa caught us."

Hii said enthusiastically then open the window. She had already dressed appropriately and was waiting for him to get ready. Gaara quickly grabbed the usual crimson coat that she prepared for him and headed to the bathroom. As he was in there, Gaara heard Hii whistling happily outside. She acted as if she was feeling alright but in fact, Gaara knew she just put on a blissful front…

"Yep, let's go!"

Hii smiled broadly at Gaara and offered him a hand. Gaara didn't have time to react since Hii had snatched his hand and jumped through the window. He quickly commanded the sand in his gourd to create a slide running from the tall building to the ground. Hii was yelling with excitement as they plunged down with such high speed. When the couple reached the land, they instantly hid away from the ninja guards, who happened to pass by. Hii was giggling in Gaara's ears while his heart was still throbbing vigorously.

"I didn't think you would jump out of the window like that." – Gaara muttered under his breath.

"Why not? I know you would catch me if I fell…It's been a long time since I have this much fun! Do you?"

"Me too."

Gaara whispered then sneaked his way to Kumo's main gate with Hii following him closely behind. Being located on top of a huge mountain, the village was covered with wispy smoke-like clouds. Through the mysterious fog, Gaara saw Hii drawing out her kunai and cut her finger's tip.

"SUMMONING JUTSU!"

In a flash, a magnificent enormous phoenix appeared in front of Gaara's eyes. Its feathers were made of the finest gold, dazzling like a morning sun. A shiny metallic armor was worn over its mighty figure, not to mention the deadly iron claws holding on the ground. Its eyes bore the blueness of aquamarines and resembled Gaara's eyes in a certain way. The gorgeous creature was giving him a proud look, a warning that he didn't suit to be its opponent. As Gaara proceeded towards Hii, the phoenix spread its wings with intimidation.

"He's not a stranger, Takehiko. He's the Fifth Kazekage – Gaara."

"Should I care?" – The phoenix asked arrogantly.

"Yes, because you will have to take me and my fiancé home right now."

After knowing about Gaara's identity, the gigantic bird gracefully lowered its body, a gesture that allowed them to climb up. Then without warnings, it shot up in the sky, spanning its golden wings through the clouds. It was flying with an incredibly fast pace that Gaara had to hold on tight to Hii. The frosty wind was slashing his cheeks, paralyzing his face muscles. The fluffy rosy clouds were surrounding them, creating a mystical atmosphere. The phoenix was hovering for a while before diving down to a verdant grass field, marking the end of their journey.

"Thank you, Takehiko."

Hii smiled gratefully at the creature as it lightly nodded at her. Gaara turned to every directions but he couldn't find anything else except for the wild green grass. "Is this a kind of trick?" he thought. Much to his understanding, this place had no trail of human's existence. Gaara felt a little disappointed since he had expected to discover more about the Imai's territory. Suddenly, Takehiko let out a demonic pitching squeal and stomped its claws to the ground three times.

The land started shaking under their feet.

Gaara couldn't believe his eyes as he saw a solid wooden gate emerging from the hard surface. It was pretty tall and well-constructed. Judging from the color, it must have been made from the best wood around. On its thick crust craved the artistic emblem of the clan: a daisy under an ancient dome, with an abstract phoenix in the background. The door started to open on its own, creaking spookily…

"_He_'s waiting for you inside." – Takehiko said.

"Alright...You wait here, Gaara-kun. You can only come in when I say so, got it?"

Gaara was fixing his look on Hii until she completely disappeared behind the door. He didn't know exactly what was going on but he was quite insecure about letting her go inside alone. He really wanted to follow Hii but she did tell him to wait. Gaara patiently folded his arms and looked at the phoenix. It didn't even look at him. Its haughty attitude somehow annoyed the Kazekage but he kept the feeling to himself…

"Your name is Takehiko?" – Gaara tried to be polite.

It didn't answer him.

"Fine…" – Gaara mumbled.

"I thought she could have done a better job but it turns out that she chooses you." – Takehiko said mockingly.

Gaara was looking at it in surprise.

"You're short."

Gaara felt the veins were popping out of his forehead. This irritating stupid bird…

A long period of silence was passing by…until the phoenix moved its claws nervously.

"You should come to her, kid. She might need some help."

Takehiko said worriedly then spitted out a golden bell on the grass, telling Gaara to keep it. The Kazekage looked confused. This time the phoenix agreed to look at him in the eyes, with such seriousness Gaara had never seen before.

"Her fear has grown too great to control and it's getting on Suzaku's nerves. She failed the test. Take this bell and ring it to her ears, it will temporarily drive Suzaku's voice away. _He_ orders me to stay out of this but well…I should go back and prepare for my punishment."

Before Gaara could react, Takehiko had vanished into the air.

Gaara slowly strolled through the huge wooden gate to the main building where the Hii used to live. The wind carried his footsteps to the rotten wood pillars, to the old broken doors. Another cold wind slashed through the air, sending chill down his spine. He didn't like this place at all. The scenery looked so devastated and gloomy. Wild grass was growing everywhere, covering the staircase under his feet. As Gaara was about to walked into the house, he caught a glimpse of an old temple standing isolated from afar. He suddenly felt a pain in his heart. That must be where Yuuki was killed. That must be the place Hii had to witness her sister's death. Gaara took a deep breath then proceeded into the house. It was spacious and freaking cold. The coldness of death…The furniture wasn't displaced a lot but they were all damaged, little or more. Here and there, Gaara could see blood spraying on the walls, on the wooden stools or on the torn silk cushions. The blood had turned brown and darkened through time. Gaara hurriedly passed through a couple of chambers until he saw Hii standing in a grand bedroom, surrounded by a glowing red light. She kneeled down to the floor, her fingers delicately touched a few stains of blood. Then…Gaara realized in sorrow that this was her parents' room. Her face said nothing but sadness.

"Hii…"

All of a sudden, she stood up and ran away from the scene. Gaara hastily followed her outside, calling her name loudly. Hii kept on running until she was far away from the building that used to be her home. Gaara arrived right behind her and hugged her in his arms. He could feel her body was shaking as she tried to hold her vulnerable tears. Hii seemed to carry great pain as she suddenly threw a punch at an old tree before Gaara could stop it. He yelled at his lover for her impulsion, pulling the girl away from the tree. He didn't want to see her torturing her body in such a brutal way.

"I can't do it, Gaara-kun. No matter how much I'm telling myself to get rid of my fear, I can't do it. My mom, my dad, Yuuki and everyone else…I can't face my past. I feel so cowardly. I hate this place so much. Suzaku's getting angry with me. He says that I'm weak…"

"Then don't care about his power anymore. Let's get out of here."

"I can't…He will haunt me…His voice, I can't make his voice disappear…"

Hii kneeled down, hugging her head painfully. The red aureola started expanding greater and heated up the area. Her head was about to be exploded when she heard the melodious sound from a bell. Gaara had tried what Takehiko told him and it actually worked. The red light seemed to be frozen then shattered like broken glass. He hurriedly helped Hii get on her feet and dragged her out of this god forsaken place. She was looking back at her home with regrets.

"How do you get that bell?" – Hii asked.

"From Takehiko." – Gaara replied and walked faster.

"Oh no, Suzaku will punish him."

"I know."

"No, wait. I must come to the shrine." – Hii said madly as they walked pass it –"I must see that place once again. I must not be afraid anymore. I will try one more time…"

"I SAID NO!"

Gaara shouted angrily and threw her on the ground in front of him. He looked so furious that Hii didn't dare to talk back. She knew she had been acting like a lunatic lately.

"WHY DO YOU HAVE TO RELY ON ITS POWER SO MUCH? IT ISN'T LIKE YOU AT ALL. YOU SHOULD HAVE MORE TRUST IN YOURSELF."

"I just want to be stronger. You also have Shukaku's chakra…"

"THAT'S NOT THE POINT. LOOK AT YOU, YOU'RE INSANE."

Hii lowered her eyes. Gaara was right, somehow…

"I agree to come here with you because I thought to you were ready to get over the past. But seems like you haven't…If I've known it would put you to this much pain, I wouldn't have gone. You don't have to push yourself, Hii. As for me, my fear has died down long ago and now I accept that chakra because it doesn't remind me much of my cruel past. I insert the chakra because I have control over it. But you…you fail to overcome your own fear…"

"I want to give it a try because you have already got over your past. I want to do the same. But…how shameful."

Gaara sighed tiredly and sat down next to Hii, placing his gourd by the side. The scorching sun had risen on top of their heads, casting its sunlight through the green canopies. Hii didn't say anything, just sat there and played with her fingers. It appeared that she had found her composed self again.

"We both have our dark paths of life…" – Gaara continued sadly –"It's difficult for us even to think of, let alone facing it. Sometimes one cannot get over the fear that rooted in their heart for so long; it's not something to be ashamed of. I think you're brave coming back here today."

"But not brave enough…"

"You've already given too much effort into this war. Your shields will be our trump card if things unfortunately fall out of place. You're our defense so please focus solely on your duty and I'll take care of the rest. And you shouldn't let Suzaku control you like that."

"I have a contract with him."

Gaara looked at her in silence. If that was true then he couldn't do anything to free her from this hopeless situation.

"I'm sorry, Gaara-kun, to make you worry this much. I will settle my trouble with Suzaku when the time is right…promise…I won't force myself."

_Power doesn't come to the weak…_

Hii rang the bell. The voice disappeared immediately.

"Never mind, let's go somewhere." – Hii cleared her throat – "I will make it up to you…"

* * *

><p>The night had fallen on the two shadows walking down the field. Nothing was better heard than a rhythmic choir of the crickets, echoing far and wide. Gaara smiled when another scent of wet wild grass entered his nose, lingering for quite a moment. Hii was still holding his hand firmly but Gaara couldn't feel a thing. In fact, he couldn't feel his own limbs anymore. Gaara even had the funny thought that his body was vapouring into the air. His eyes were fighting against his will. Such tall grass, he saw. Blurry, blurry…His eyes were closing…he wished to sleep.<p>

"Get a hold of yourself, Gaara –kun!"

Hii said and pinched his arm. Gaara then felt himself running through the grass, despite how hard they were whipping his face. Poor Gaara, his legs seemed to lose their will to run. Gaara just wanted to give up…But strangely, by the time they got to the other side Gaara's sleepiness immediately disappeared. He gave Hii a questioning look and only received her laughter in return.

"I'm sorry, Gaara-kun." – Hii tried to hold her mouth –"I didn't think they could have such a great impact on you."

Gaara scratched his head, looking confused. He didn't quite understand what Hii meant.

"Those aren't normal grass. They're Lullaby herb, a necessary medicine I need to collect for the medic squad. If you smell just a small proportion, it could serve as a great tranquilizer. If you smell too much, they could put you to sleep…forever!"

"Are you kidding me? That was a WHOLE field out there" – Gaara pointed at the grass, startled.

Hii giggled and kissed him on the cheek. Gaara then followed Hii to an old Japanese-styled cottage, resting peacefully by a spring. He couldn't help but to admire how serene the nature was in this place. The breeze, carrying the fine but vague herbal scent, blew softly through the wild daisies. Their petals were quivering in such a gentle and delicate way. This was so much different from his home village, where only sand and harsh wind dominated the land. Gaara wondered if he finally came to love this place. Suddenly, a cold wind blew on his face, giving him a chill…

Lightning was ripping the sky apart, followed by a roar of thunder.

"Look like it's going to rain. Big one!" – Hii said cheerfully.

"I'll light the candle."

"Not now Gaara-kun, come watch the rain with me."

Gaara smiled warmly at Hii and came to her side. There's no way he could refuse such an adorable request from his lover. He could never forget how much Hii adored listening to the dripping sound of the rain or how much she loved looking at the rain drops on her little fingers. To him, her eyes were shining like the most gorgeous stars on the sky…

Gaara abruptly put his arm around Hii's shoulders and caressed her gently.

"You know, I'm scared of death. I might act bravely but actually…I'm scared." – Hii blurted.

Gaara continued to stay silent. It was hard for him to admit the same fear, because of his man's pride, perhaps…

"Sometimes, I just want to get away from this shinobi's world. No more power, no more struggles, no more pain. And I will take you with me, free ourselves from the burden of our past, from the hardship that people put us through…We will have kids and raise them together like a normal happy family."

"I agree with the kids' part, not the other."

"I know you would say that…You're so warm, Gaara-kun. I like it"

Hii said sweetly and buried her head in his chest. She felt like a little cat that needed pampering. Gaara delicately stroked her hair, wiping the dirt away from her shirt. They suddenly caught each other's eyes. Hii looked closely at Gaara's face, especially his eyes. Those eyes that were bluer than the bluest ocean…Then, he kissed her tenderly in the night. Hii felt her face was burning when Gaara's lips touch hers in a sensual way. This was the romantic kiss she always dreamt of: with Gaara, with the rain. She couldn't resist but to kiss Gaara back like she had never kissed before. As for Gaara, he was surprised at how passionate Hii was tonight. Her hands lingered on the back of his head, pulling him down on top of her. Gaara felt like he was losing control of himself, he just wanted to follow her lead. His body was burning with passion. Gaara rubbed his helpless lips against her warm neck while his hands were busy pinning Hii to the ground. Hii started to take off his clothes. Gaara could feel that his jacket had fallen off his back…Her breathing was so provocative…Hii was unzipping his long coat…

"Wait, Hii. Do you truly want to do this?" – Gaara asked, breathing heavily on her lips.

Hii looked at him doubtfully and lightly pushed his body away from hers. Gaara obediently sat back and watched his fiancée stood up, heading to the door. He tried to utter some words but he was too nervous to do so.

"You don't like us taking our relationship to the next level?" – Hii asked with a smile.

"I do want us to be more intimate but I understand that you want to save it till the official wedding."

"I want to be your bride now." – Hii replied with determination –"The war is coming and who knows what would happen. What if I die and…"

"Don't say such foolish thing!" – Gaara commanded, standing up angrily.

"But still…Don't you want to see me like this?"

Gaara stood spellbound when he saw Hii started to take her clothes off. Little by little, her luscious flesh appeared in front of his eyes. Her clothless figure made him feel breathless. Gaara couldn't get his eyes off the dim shade of her tempting derriere. Hii slowly turned her pretty face to him, smiling gracefully. She was approaching him…Hii was so close…Gaara didn't know what to do when her naked breasts press against his chest…He was numb with anxiety…

"Tell me, Gaara-kun. This isn't enough to turn you on?" – Hii said naughtily.

Watching her juicy lips moving made Gaara lose his mind. He embraced Hii with his manly arms and gave her the kiss she always wanted. His body's temperature was rising. Hii was kissing him more affectionate than ever. Her tongue was caressing his, licking him erotically. Her hands were doing such a good job. His crimson coat fell off…The next thing Gaara knew was that he had pushed Hii down to the floor again. Their bare skin was rubbing against each other. His hands traveled wildly on her body. Hii closed her eyes, waiting…Gaara stroked her cheek…

"I love you, Hii…"

"I love you more, Gaara-kun."

_The rain continued to pour._

_In the dim light, the two figures was clinging on to each other affectionately_

_The boy was taking pleasure in exploring the girl's secret territories._

_She called his name dearly._

_Tonight, he had made her his woman. _


	25. Chapter 24

Chapter 24: Sayo- nara.

"Hey, how was it?"

Temari was smiling slyly at Hii when she saw the poor girl's blushing face. No matter how hard Hii tried to hide her embarrassment, Temari just brought it out to the sunlight. The Kazekage's sister continuously made Hii tell the truth, which resulted in Hii covering the reddish face with her palms. She wanted to let Temari know everything but she couldn't find the courage to carry out her intention. As she had expected, the smart kunoichi of the Hidden Sand didn't give up. Instead of giving Hii a break, she continued to pour thousands questions on her Kazekanshi.

"Don't tell me that nothing happened. You guys disappeared for a day and then returned very late the next morning. Since then Gaara's been acting weird. You're also acting weird. Come on; tell your big sister what's going on between you two!"

Hii persistently shook her head. She couldn't help grinning mysteriously at the curious Temari.

"Ok then, just "yes" or "no". Did you two do it?"

Hii lightly nodded.

"Ha, I knew it!" – Temari said victoriously –"Nothing could escape my detective eyes. So how was my little brother? Tell me, tell me. Don't be shy."

"Temari – neechan, it's embarrassing. You're so mean!"

"You know I'm the cruelest female ninja on earth, right? Of course I'm evil and now tell me. I'm dying to know how Gaara performed on his first…"

"For your information, I did well and had nothing to be complained about. Right, Hii?"

Gaara suddenly appeared in front of the ladies, probably being annoyed. Temari smiled mildly at Gaara when she heard the cold voice of her powerful brother. Hii didn't dare to look at his face. She was all red from top to toe and was heated with shame.

"Anyway, your man is looking for you Temari. He's been asking where you are the whole time."

"My man?"

"Nara Shikamaru isn't it?" – Gaara said coolly –"Go help him, assist him or whatever and leave us alone. Besides, don't you need to build up your relationship as well?"

Hii dropped her mouth as she heard what Gaara had said and so did Temari. Within a second later, Temari stood up angrily and walked away from her spot. But before she disappeared from their sight, Temari turned around and yelled at Gaara.

"That Konoha idiot has nothing to do with me! He's not my man and doesn't he dare to order me around like that. I'll go teach him a lesson. And you, Gaara…don't make up stupid rumour that will destroy your sister's reputation!"

Temari stopped to inhale deeply then vanished with a *puff* sound. Hii found it amusing since she had never seen Temari being pushed into an awkward situation. She did react a little more aggressive than usual though. Gaara then joined Hii on the bench, handing her a bottle of water. He quietly watched Hii playing with it.

"You told her about us?" – Gaara asked, feeling bothersome.

"I… I didn't say anything. She guessed it." – Hii stuttered.

"Never mind, my siblings will know sooner or later."

"Hey, do you think Temari is having a crush on Shikamaru? Did you see her reaction?"

"What? I don't care. I just said that to make her go away. And now…sit still!"

The girl's face reddened as Gaara lay down on her lap. He looked so carefree and untroubled even when the war was about to break out. The Kazekage then smiled at his lover and received her affectionate glance in return. Their hands lingered on one another as the couple enjoyed the beautiful blue sky above Kumo village. A moment later, Gaara would have to leave for battle, leaving his lady behind. Hii softly ran her fingers through Gaara's red hair then suddenly bent down to kiss his "Love" kanji on the forehead. The Kazekage slowly got up and looked at Hii deeply in the eyes. She leant forward him… She quickly laid a tender kiss on his lips then broke a way immediately. Gaara pulled her closer to his face again. His nose tip touched hers, his hand holding hers tight…

There was a noisy sound from the horn.

Gaara stood up and turned his back at Hii even though he didn't want to do so. It was hurtful for him to walk straight ahead without looking back at her. If he did, it would only be harder for him to part away from his loved one. He heard footsteps coming from behind.

"Don't go!"

Hii dashed forward and hugged his arm tightly. Gaara sighed while gently removing her fingers from his sleeve. Hii was holding him tighter, leaning her cheeks on his back. For a moment, Gaara wished time could stop. He wished to stay with Hii forever. He wished to go back to their good old days. But now their optimistic future was at risk because of the stupid Akatsuki.

"Take care, Hii. I'll come back, I promise…" - Gaara said, trying to make his voice sound as normal as possible.

Hii simply nodded with her face full of sadness. Gaara then took her hand and placed it on his lips. She stepped closer to him. It was difficult for them to say good bye.

"Oi they're looking for you, Gaara."

Hii pulled away from Gaara as she heard Kankurou's voice in the air. Gaara turned around to see Kankurou was walking together with Temari and Shikamaru. Hii had already come back to her carefree attitude as usual. Her sudden change of emotion surprised Gaara a great deal.

"I'm sorry, Gaara-kun. I shouldn't have dragged your mood down like that…" – Hii grinned –"Go out there and show them how powerful you are. Make me proud, my General."

Gaara stood still as Hii caressed his cheek the last time.

"Go. I'll be fine." – Hii mumbled.

Gaara smiled at Hii then left for the meeting of the troops. The girl sighed discretely when she watched his back moving further from her. Temari quietly embraced Hii in her arms, muttering in her ears the encouraging words. Hii suddenly felt tears in her eyes. However, she couldn't let herself cry in front of her comrades.

"Be safe, Temari-neechan." – Hii smiled broadly again– "Please be safe. Shikamaru-kun, can you…"

"It's troublesome but I'll take good care of her…" – Shikamaru said –"…and Gaara."

"Who need you?" – Temari mumbled.

"You too, Kankurou-niichan." – Hii said and hugged him – "I'll be waiting for you guys."

The gang finally said good bye to the girl and left her alone. Hii blearily looked at the head quarter's direction and threw herself on the bench again. She was worried about the outcome of this war as well as the lives of her beloved. Her anxiety somehow awakened the voice one more time.

_My my, you're such a scaredy cat._

Hii took out her bell.

_It's time you do something better than running away, don't you think?_

Hii closed her eye in despair.

When Hii opened her eyes again, she had arrived at an empty dimension. Through her conscious sense, this space of nihility didn't appear to be in a dream. Hii felt herself floating to an indefinite place; there was no distinguishing sign of where she was going. Suddenly, a bright red light emerged from nowhere. It was expanding greater and greater until it got the form of a mighty beast.

"Finally, we meet again." – Suzaku said imperiously –"But I can't help you if that fear hasn't disappeared."

"There's no time for that now. The war has started; please lend me your strength."

"What's the point when you can't use it effectively? You may have the phoenix's chakra but the enemy can be much stronger than you."

"We'll have to give it everything we got. Better something than nothing…"

"Do you realize that with your chakra's amount right now, you will die the moment you set foot to the battle? You wouldn't survive pass five jutsus."

"THAT'S WHY I NEED YOU! What part of it don't you understand?"

"Easy. Instead of begging me, why don't you just get rid of your fear? Or do you even know what you're afraid of?"

"I told you I couldn't…Why don't you put yourself in my situation. Can you get over it if you saw your mother killing your father? If you see your sister got murdered and you couldn't do anything about it? Have you ever felt as hopeless as I was? Because of that, I couldn't stay in Kumo. I couldn't be a good granddaughter to my grandfather. And now Gaara is the only hope I have…"

"And you're afraid of losing him too…"

Hii stayed silent and lowered her eyes. Suzaku had spoken the truth. It was true that Gaara meant the world to her…

"Look, Suzaku…" – Hii said hesitantly – "I'm just a normal shinobi born with common fear. I can control it but I can't make it disappear. The only thing left with me now is the will to fight. I will support the allies with my own strength but I do expect you to respect our contract…"

"You can have our chakra but summoning me…no."

"We'll see about that."

Suzaku narrowed his eyes at Hii's determination. Without any delay, the phoenix god laughed wickedly and turned itself into a huge fire ball. Hii quickly guarded herself with a barrier as the fire swept through her face. As the curtain of flame faded away, Hii noticed that she had been returned to where she was, to the real world of chaos and sorrow.


	26. Chapter 25

Chapter 25: Fallen angel.

The war had officially begun.

All four divisions had already advanced to the menacing battlefront. News was reported back and forth with such striking speed. It was not long before the first clash occurred. Tension was high and blood was spilled. The Shinobi force had given their best in their violent encounter with the atrocious enemy. Their impetus was rising like a flaring fire and so did their opponents. So far, the battle hadn't decided its winner but both sides seemed to have suffered great loss.

_Hii, I'm sorry…_

Gaara slowly rose behind a rocky shield of the exhausted Tsuchikage. He could barely move his hands and worse, he ran out of chakra. Even with the help of Shukaku's power, he couldn't last more than five matches against Madara. That man was truly a beast. The shinobi's fight had turn the original mountainous place into a vast area, where dust was the only thing one could see. Gaara cautiously looked outside the battlefield and saw Madara ramping through every corner, trying to snatch them out of the stony shells. Gaara shuddered at the thought of being crushed by Madara. If that man saw him, he would be finished. Nevertheless, Gaara secretly moved from his position in order to attack Madara again. He could still fight; he wouldn't let that monster have the victory. Gaara focused his very last chakra and form a final sand tsunami.

"It's too late, stupid head." – Madara laughed cruelly.

Gaara stood frozen as a Sunsano'o threw its sword at him. He couldn't gather the strength to move. He could hear Tsunade's voice yelling from the afar and so did other Kages. Gaara closed his eyes at once. It was over.

But it wasn't.

Gaara hadn't come to his sense when he heard a high pitching sound, like something was drilling in his ears. Then he was lifted in the sky before he could find his calmness. The speed made everything become blurry through his eyes. Raikage swiftly caught Gaara as the phoenix released him from its claws before going back to its target. Gaara startled as he saw the Susano'o was shattered and destroyed completely. Such an immeasurable strength…To his surprise, he noticed an abnormal creature standing in front of him with sharp claws growing from its hands. When it turned to face him, Gaara suddenly jumped back as he saw its demonic features.

"Who are you?" – Gaara asked doubtfully.

"Right...I'm hideous."

"Who?"

"Gaara-kun, don't you recognize me?"

"Hii? Hii, is that you? Your voice is weird."

"I…I don't have much chakra left. If I don't fight in this form, I can't have enough chakra."

Hii quickly turned away as Gaara slowly walked towards her in pain. His arms were bleeding and so was his forehead. Hii took another step away from Gaara. To be precise, her appearance right now was to blame for the lost of her confidence. Deep down inside, she hoped that Gaara wouldn't find her to be scary.

"You look…scary." – Gaara said.

"Yeah, thanks a lot." – Hii replied, feeling annoyed all of a sudden.

"Aren't you supposed to take care of the shield at the headquarter?" – Raikage asked angrily.

"I heard you guys were having your ass kicked by Madara so I come to help."

"It's not time to fool around…"

"No, I'm not. Tsunade-sama, please treat others' wounds while I buy you sometimes with that old man."

"Come, you fool…"

Madara roared in excitement when he looked at Hii. The girl calmly reached for her sword on the back and brought out her pair of electrical wings. Within a split second, she dashed towards him with an immeasurable speed, escorted by her phoenix. Gaara opened his eyes widely at the brutal fighting scene occurring not far from his location. Hii continuously threw her lightning shurikens at Madara but his Susano'o had knocked them all over the place. Takehiko was also shooting metal arrows at him but they were all useless against his shield of darkness. Apparently, their plan of approaching Madara had failed. However, Hii was smart enough to embed her chakra in the shurikens. She smiled then performed a hand seal from a safe distance. Suddenly, blue rays of lights scattered everywhere, blinding people with their dazzling reflection. Madara was furious to find himself immobilized by countless electric strings coming from the ground. Determined not to let this valuable chance slip away, Hii commanded Takehiko to attack with her at once.

"DOUBLE AIR DRILLS!"

"DIE…"

Gaara instantly used his remaining chakra to form a sand shield protecting everyone as an enormous explosion took place, blowing the deadly heavy rocks at them. He looked to his side in horror and saw Hii lying motionlessly on the ground. The atmospheric pressure must have been too great that it knocked her unconscious. Her fingers started moving…Gaara hurriedly dragged himself to where Hii was, only to find her smirking at the sky.

"His Susano'o is too strong…" – Hii said bitterly – "…even stronger than Sasuke's…"

"He got his guard up against you, Nori." – Takehiko shook his head.

Hii leisurely got up and sighed. Weak. Useless. Those words started running wild in her boiled head. Hii clenched her fists and stood up once again in front of Gaara's astonishing eyes. She would kill that man no matter what; she would prove her capability to Takehiko. Hii felt that she had become more aggressive little by little. Fury was heating in her heart and shadowing her mind.

"Hii, calm down." – Gaara mumbled –"Madara isn't an ordinary opponent and you know that. We need a plan…Argh…"

"Gaara-kun, are you alright?"

Hii held Gaara's arm in panic when she saw him collapse because of the pain. She didn't have much time to concern about him since she had to create an air barrier to protect the troop from an army of wooden clones. They frenziedly dashed towards her like a bunch of hungry sharks but were later destroyed by the invisible air blazes from her shield. Madara narrowed his eyes at his defeated clone and dashed towards Hii with his monstrous speed. On his way, he created an enormous meteor and threw it at the army. Hii hastily formed another hand seal. This time, the whole meteor was slowly sucked into a transparent hole on the shield, the same hole that sucked in Sasuke's amaterasu. Heavy grey smoke was curling in the air, blocking her vision entirely. In order to absorb that huge fireball, Hii had lost quite a great amount of chakra. She was breathing heavily, nailing one of her knees on the ground… If this continued, the shinobi force would lose this battle.

"Any thoughts?" – Tsunade winced.

"If we can get Madara inside my shield, I can nullify his techniques. But we can't even get close to him…"

"Kazekage and I can protect the troop with our shields." – Tsuchikage said –"Save your chakra for the final blow, Imai."

"But you two are badly injured…"

"DEADLY BLOW."

Tsunade roared fearlessly and kicked Madara in the face as he appeared near the barrier. Needless to say, the legendary shinobi was thrown to a far distance before he could react. Tsunade smirked and turned to her comrades who were numb at her sudden disastrous strength.

"It's our chance. Let's go!"

Raikage quickly jumped on Takehiko's back with his granddaughter and disappeared in the clouds. Mizukage and Tsunade were also on their way to back them up. Before Madara could stand on his feet again, he was trapped by thousands metal spears from Takehiko and glued to the ground by the lava from Mizukage. He was struggling to get out of the sticky mixture and the scorching heat. Raikage saw it as a good opportunity and was ready for his attack…

"Wait! That's a clone…" – Hii yelled.

However, Madara had already made his move.

Hii didn't know what had happened as she was falling freely from the sky. Her mind was blank after seeing a weird purple light, which she thought to be one of Madara's techniques. She kept on falling…Strange memories started popping out from her head, appeared in various colorful bubbles. She could hear the painful groans from her father, the cry of her mother, Yuuki's weakened breath and the terrifying screams of those she killed that night…

"Hii, are you there?"

Gaara lightly shook Hii's shoulders to bring back her consciousness. Fortunately, he had arrived in time to catch Hii with his sand although he hadn't regained much of his chakra. She quietly looked around and caught Gaara's eyes again. Through the reflections in his irises, Hii could tell that she had returned to her human form.

"What's going on?" – Hii asked.

"Madara put everyone under his genjutsu. It seems like you're the only one that got away but still…it affected you a little. He sucked out your chakra…" – Gaara said.

"Everyone? Grandpa, where's my grandpa?"

Gaara sadly looked to his right when Hii asked about the Raikage. It didn't take her long to realize the body covered in blood of Takehiko was lying lifelessly on the dry land. Frightened as she was, Hii cupped her mouth then crawled to her beloved phoenix. One of his wings was broken and blood was coming out from his eyes. His golden feathers were shedding from his back and flew away with the harsh breeze. He was still breathing. Hii tremblingly lifted his enormous wing to find the Raikage…

There was nothing apart from blood on his face and his limbs. His chest was badly burnt from the flame, which turned black and swollen under her hand. He was alive but only in a matter of minutes. Hii let out a painful scream.

"Hii, calm down. Please…" – Gaara yelled, trying to hold her.

"THIS IS JUST ANOTHER ILLUSION. I'LL GET OUT OF THIS…"

"No, damn it. It's all reality. You're real. I am real. CALM DOWN!"

Madara's cruel laugh was sounding from a far distance. Hii had lost her mind and the only thing motivating her now was to make that man disappear from this world. Hii slowly rose straight and strong. Pushing Gaara aside, she coldly cut her finger…blood was dripping to her feet…

_One, I'm afraid of being alone._

"SUMMONING JUTSU!"

_Two, I'm afraid of being worthless._

"SUMMONING JUTSU!"

_Three, I'm afraid of facing the past._

"SUMMONING JUTSU!"

_Four, I'm afraid of losing my loved ones._

"SUMMONING JUTSU!"

_Five, I'm afraid of Death._

"SUMMONING JUTSU!"

_All those fears couldn't beat my will…_

"Stop…" – Takehiko suddenly muttered under his breath –"Don't do it. You'll die. You can't summon him this way. It's not the right…"

_Come out, Suzaku…COME OUT!_

There was blood on her lips.

A high squeak astounded people in its range. A gorgeous beautiful phoenix made its appearance from Hii's blood on the ground. Everyone was stunned as they had never seen such a fearsome beast before. It fiercely flew towards Madara who was petrified with terror. He hastily threw his susano'o clones at Suzaku but the mighty phoenix destroyed them with it wings of fire. The beast was pursuing Madara with great speed. Madara's time had come…

"WATCH OUT!"

Gaara shouted as he spotted the real Madara was inches away from the Raikage and Hii. She didn't move away from her post...Madara brutally threw a wooden spear at the helpless girl. Gaara's remaining sand automatically covered Hii and at the same time held Madara tightly. Gaara could see the man was smirking…A second later, Suzaku dashed towards him and turned itself into a huge fireball, seeting Madara's rotten flesh on flame. Gaara silently watched the fire take place, feeling a relief in his heart. The battle was over. Madara was finally sealed away.

"Nice job." – Tsunade said with a smile.

"Please take care of Raikage." – Gaara said breathlessly.

Remembering that Hii was still in his sand barrier, Gaara happily walked towards her with a broad grin on his face. They had truly won. She had done such a courageous job and he was so proud of her. As he stood in front of his sand wall, Gaara suddenly had a fright as he saw a hole on his sand shield. The sand leisurely fell off…

No one celebrated anymore.

Gaara looked at the horrific scene before his eyes without having time to realize that it was reality. Hii was still standing in front of him with her hands firmly placed on his manly shoulder. Blood was dripping down from her mouth to the dry ground, drop by drop. Nothing could describe how much Gaara wanted to cry in pain but he couldn't. He couldn't breathe. He looked at the sharp wooden spear piercing through the middle of her chest, dyeing with the redness of her blood. Hii smiled at him lovingly. Little by little, she collapsed to the ground and tears started rolling down her cheeks.

"HII, HII NO…"

Gaara hastily caught her back, kneeling on the damp surface. He panickingly held her in his arm, attempted to pull the spear away but Hii had stopped him. She was breathing weakly now. Gaara's tremble hand was moving from her smooth black hair to her grey pale cheek. Her body became colder, which frightened him even more. Tears were in the corner of his eyes.

"Don't…don't cry…" – Hii said difficultly.

"I'm not crying, Hii. It's alright, the medic squad is coming here, just wait…MEDIC…MEDIC."

Everyone couldn't hold their tears seeing Gaara roaring hopelessly on top of his lung. Tsuchikage quickly held his shoulders to calm him down but Gaara seemed to lose his mind. He was hugging Hii tighter with an insane attitude. He couldn't keep calm anymore when he knew that Hii was dying. Gaara turned to Tsunade, giving her an imploring look but she shook her head in return. She was just as helpless as he was. Not far away, Temari was crying sorrowfully on Shikamaru's shoulders, calling her name. Hii tried to keep a pleasant face and raised her hand towards Gaara's face. He automatically rubbed his heated cheek against her freezing palm with a hope to warm it up.

"You must stay with me. We have so many plans for the future…" – Gaara mumbled, feeling out of his mind –"We will fight together, do missions together. We will have children, look at them growing up and getting married, then our grandchildren...No, you must not die."

Hii coughed again, with a lot of blood exited from her mouth. Gaara knew Hii couldn't hold on for long. Her blood was flowing everywhere, absorbed into the solid ground. He didn't want to live either, if only he could die with her.

"Live…strong…you're the…Kazekage…"

Hii spoke with a quavering voice then reached for her grandfather's motionless hand on the ground.

"I'm sorry…grandpa. I'm…no good…for you…"

Gaara shook his head and kissed her sweating forehead, his lips lingered on her skin for a while. His heart just wanted to explode. He didn't want to be separated from her. Her heartbeat was decreasing…Tears…No, he must not cry either. Hii wouldn't be pleased if she saw his tears.

"I love you, Hii. I love you so much." – Gaara said quietly.

"I lov..."

But before she could finish her line, Hii had gone up into flame. The vigorous blazing fire was consuming her body, leaving nothing behind. Temari was crying so hard that she couldn't stand on her own feet. She even seemed to suffer much greater when she saw her little brother hanging on to the burning corpse. Gaara was still sitting there like a statue, refusing to let go of Hii. The fire couldn't harm him since his sand continuously protected his body. His agony was beyond his bearing limit.

_Can you at least let me feel the pain she's feeling?_

The sand kept on covering him.

Finally, the fire was over. Gaara stared blankly at his bare hands, where a moment ago Hii was lying on. She had truly gone this time, burnt to ashes. The Kazekage slowly rose on his feet and walked towards the horizon. As Hii wished, he didn't shed a tear. He was strong.

He had won this war.

But with a price.

_The End_

* * *

><p>Author's note: Finally, this is the last chapter and I hope you enjoy my story. Thank you, my beloved readers - those who readreviewed/liked/alerted this fanfic. Once again, if you like it or want to help me improve, please **review.**

Disclaimer (again): mine are only Hii (Imai Nori), Johou, the Imai clan, Yuuki, Chie, Raikage's son (no name :"), Suzaku, Takehiko. Other characters appeared in this fanfic belongs to "Naruto" by Kishimoto Masashi -sensei.


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